Royal College of Nursing (RCN) gives instructions to Royal Berkshire Hospital Staff on taking strike action
The Government is to use around 2,000 military personnel on standby ahead of the NHS Ambulance strike which is planned for the 15th and 20 December
It would see Military personnel driving Ambulances as they did during Covid, plus military-trained teams will man Ambulance control rooms.
Nurses will also walk out on strike at Wokingham and The Royal Berkshire Hospital, but hospital bosses have said the A and E and ITC units will run as normal during strike days.
Royal College of Nursing Message to Royal Berkshire Staff
If you are scheduled to work that day you can participate in strike action by withdrawing your labour and not working on that day.
Picket lines will be in place at:
- Royal Berkshire Hospital, Craven Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG15AN
As a member of the RCN employed at Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, you have the right to be part of lawful strike action.
If you are not scheduled to work on the day of strike action, you can still come down to the picket line to support your colleagues. Members of the public will be able to show their support for striking nursing staff by visiting picket lines.
So what is the RCN trying to achieve?
RCN statements
To rectify the years of real-terms pay cuts that are pushing people out of the nursing profession and putting patient safety at risk.
The RCN’s pay position is clear. We expect to see a pay award that goes 5% above inflation (the retail prices index).
We reached our pay position for 2022-23 in close collaboration with our members across the UK. We carried out an analysis of economic trends and NHS pay over the past decade. We also considered the staffing pressures facing the profession.
What is the benefit of a phased approach to strike action?
By taking strike action the RCN is putting pressure on the government to come to the table and enter into meaningful negotiations on pay. Through prolonged action we are increasing pressure over time. If your employer is not scheduled for action in December, we expect you will be taking strike action in January unless governments find a way to resolve our dispute.
It’s going to be a Christmas of strikes ahead from the RMT and Postal Workers and also could be joining the picket lines could be firefighters this could be a very long and bleak winter ahead for many. During the last fire strike of 2005 Armed forces were drafted in to run the fire service. Royal Berkshire fire and rescue service during the last few months has been putting plans into action to hire contingency firefighters in case of a fire strike.