A 48-hour strike by British nurses has been thrown into doubt after the High Court ruled it to be illegal. Despite the setback, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) union summoned the “biggest nursing strike yet” and urged the reopening of pay talks.
The government’s offer of a 5% pay rise, alongside a one-time £1,250 bonus, was rejected on April 14th. RCN officials said 54% of the union’s eligible members voted against the offer. Nurse representatives earlier this year demanded a rise of 5% above inflation.
Strikes were set to be held from 8 p.m. BST April 30th, until May 2nd. However, a High Court strike mandate expires on Monday evening, not the following day. Daniel Mortimer, the chief executive of NHS Employers, quoted in The Daily Telegraph, said:
The RCN ballot for industrial action ended at midday on November 2nd, 2022 and allows the union six months to undertake any action approved by that ballot. NHS Employers has written to the RCN stating our view—on behalf of Trusts in England, and with clear legal advice—that the RCN’s mandate for industrial action ends at midnight on Monday, May 1st.
We have therefore asked the RCN to amend its guidance to its members regarding any action planned for Tuesday May 2nd, 2023. We are in ongoing exchanges with the RCN on this matter.
Announcing its strike action on April 30th, the RCN reflected the change to its original plans, noting that “the strike was originally planned to run for 48 hours, ending at 8 p.m. on Tuesday (May 2nd) but had to be cut short following a High Court hearing in which the judge ruled in favour of the government.” The short-cutting of plans does not, however, mean Britons will be free from disruption over the bank holiday Monday—their access to the NHS has already been greatly curtailed following years of mismanagement and a rapid build-up of the treatment backlog following the COVID pandemic.
