NHS Scotland nurses and health workers have proposed a 5.5% pay rise

NHS nurses and healthcare workers in Scotland have been offered a 5.5% pay rise after what unions describe as “months of pressure” to secure a new deal.

Almost 170,000 staff – including midwives, paramedics, health professionals and porters – will receive a pay rise by April for 2024-25.

The proposed deal is expected to cost £448m and is in line with the offer made to NHS staff in England.

The Scottish Government said the proposal, if accepted by unions, would ensure they have the best NHS pay in the UK.

Doctors are not included in the deal because they negotiate their salary separately.

Colin Pullman, director of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) in Scotland, said staff were “rightly disappointed” that the Scottish Government had “kept them waiting while the cost of living continued to rise”.

The RCN is now among the unions representing the workers’ reform agenda which is considering a pay offer.

However, Mr Polman said it had taken months of pressure “by the RCN and other health trade unions” for the Scottish Government to propose the pay.

He added: “Our wage claim, submitted in February, called for an offer that reflected the rise in the cost of living and highlighted historical wage erosion.

“Our members will decide whether today’s announcement is sufficient. That process starts with RCN Scotland board members looking at the proposal in detail.”

The chairman of RCN Scotland stressed: “Nursing staff are an ever-present, critical safety workforce across health and care.

“Our salaries do not reflect this and will not continue to do so today. Fair pay is essential to recruiting and retaining nursing staff, filling the thousands of vacant nursing jobs and giving people the care they deserve.”

Unison said it would also consider the offer, although Matt McLaughlin, who leads the union on NHS pay, said: “It is a shame to receive a pay offer for NHS staff in Scotland. It took a long time.

“Ultimately, workers will have the opportunity to decide whether to accept or reject the proposed increase, which is in line with pay rises in many other parts of the UK.”

He added: “NHS staff were given a pay rise five months ago, and it is very unfair to make them wait so long.

“This delay cannot be repeated in the next pay round. The Scottish Government must recognize that pay delays directly affect staff morale.”

Scottish Government ministers have previously said they are proud that Scotland is the only country in the UK to have avoided NHS strike action.

Despite avoiding the chaos of strikes, the latest figures have shown that NHS waiting lists in Scotland reached a record size at the end of March. 690,000 are waiting for planned outpatient or inpatient care.

The Scottish Government wanted to build 10 new National Treatment Centers to tackle the NHS backlog by delivering an extra 40,000 procedures a year, but Expenses are deferred With only three open, and two more scheduled to open this year.

The Nuffield Trust found earlier this year that the number of people going to hospital privately for treatment had increased by 80% since 2019.

Health Secretary Neil Gray said he hoped unions would accept the proposal.

“Following weeks of constructive engagement with trade union representatives, I am pleased to agree to a proposal, which will ensure that Scottish nurses and NHS staff in England receive the pay review body’s recommendations. It has the best salary package.

“I want to once again thank Scotland’s hard-working health workers for their commitment and patience – they are the very backbone of the NHS and we are committed to supporting them, especially during life’s crisis. “

He added: “I appreciate the continued efforts around the table and that trade unions will now pass this on to their members.”