Explainer: When and why nurses at Scarborough Hospital will be striking in January

Nurses at Scarborough Hospital will be going on strike for two consecutive days from January 18 – 19 over a dispute with the Government over paý for the 2022/23 year.

The nurses’ union, The Royal College of Nursing, has said that since 2010 nurses have faced a real terms pay cut of up to 20 per cent with thousands leaving the profession which has negatively affected patient safety.

Alongside staff at dozens of other NHS employers in England, nurses at the York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust will go on strike later this month.

A spokesperson for the Trust told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “The Trust has robust plans in place to manage the impact of any industrial action which ensures we can continue to deliver safe care for our patients.

“To do this, our staff and union representatives have worked together to put in place extensive procedures and processes which focus on maintaining essential services, although these may be staffed differently and there may be delays or other changes for patients.”

The strikes will take place from 7am to 8pm and a picket line is planned for the bottom of Woodlands Road.

What services are affected?

The NHS has said that people who need “urgent care” should use NHS111 online or call NHS 111 to be assessed and directed to the right care for them.

However, emergency care will continue to be available on the strike days, January 18 – 19, and people who are seriously ill or whose life is at risk should “continue to come forward as normal”.

The NHS has also said that people who become seriously ill should call 999 or attend an emergency department as normal.

While some appointments will have been rescheduled and patients will have been contacted about this, those who still have an appointment “should attend as planned”.

GP services will be running as normal on the strike days and hospital inpatients will be informed of how their care will be impacted on a ward-by-ward basis.

What to do in an emergency?

The NHS has said: “Emergency care will continue to be available across all parts of the country.

“It is really important that in emergency and life-threatening cases patients continue to come forward as normal.”

However, they have emphasised that “patients should only call 999 if seriously ill or injured, and there is risk to life” in which case ambulances will be dispatched “where clinically appropriate”.

What is the dispute about?

The Royal College of Nursing is in a dispute with the Government over the pay award for 2022/23.

The RCN has called for a pay rise of five per cent above inflation (19 per cent) as it says that since 2010 “in real terms, the salary of an experienced nurse has fallen by 20 per cent in England”.

However, the Government has said that it stands by the recommendation of the “independent” pay review body which recommended that nurses receive an increase of around £1,400, worth about 4 per cent.

The Government has said that this would be in line with its inflation targets and NHS budget.

Is there a resolution in sight?

Unlike in December, strike action will go ahead at the York and Scarborough NHS Trust later this month, with the number of NHS employers in England where the action will take place, increasing from 44 to at least 55 trusts.

However, the walkouts could still be called off as the RCN has stated that it is willing to cancel the strikes if the Government agrees to negotiate.

In December, the Government refused to negotiate on pay, instead standing by the recommendations of the pay review body.

Though it is possible that ministers will make an improved pay offer before the strikes go ahead, as it stands, the walkouts will take place as scheduled.