Nurses should see the job “as the vocation that it is” rather than going out on strike.
A top Tory has told nurses to see the job “as the vocation that it is” rather than going out on strike.
Earlier this week, Conservative peer and Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Health and Social Care, Baron Markham, was asked what advice he would give a nurse “working in theatre, and at the top of her pay band, alongside agency nurses who are paid two to three times as much as she is.”
When asked if the nurse should quit, join an agency, “or vote to strike,” he responded by explaining, “I would hope and trust that such a respected person would see this position as the vocation that it is.”
Nurses across England, Wales and Northern Ireland are currently voting on if to take strike action. It comes as the most experienced frontline nurses are around £10,000 a year worse off in real terms than in 2008.
50,000 ‘more’ nurses.
Baron Markham explained in the House of Lords debate, “We accept that there are some agency workers being used in this space. Because obviously, in terms of safety, we need to make sure we cover that number of people.
“The whole recruitment plan – which, again, we are on target to achieve – is all about making sure we have enough nurses so that we do not have to use agency workers.
When questioned on plans to address the nursing workforce shortage, Baron Markham explained, “towards that aim we have set up the nursing associate role, which is a stepping-stone to allow people to ease in and have qualifications on the way to becoming a fully trained nurse. ”
However, an analysis by the King’s Fund revealed that although the NHS is on track to recruit 50,000 more nurses by March 2024, it is not having a “substantial impact” on the number of unfilled posts.
Pouring petrol on the fire.
Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting commented previously that Tory’s are “pouring petrol on the fire of the shortage of nurses”. Explaining, “the message they get from the Government is either ‘aren’t you lucky’, or ‘don’t let the door hit you on the way out’.
Nurses United have accused the Baron of attempting to push the profession back “into a Charles Dickens fantasy”.
Lead organiser for the group Anthony Johnson added, “We all know how outdated the Conservative party’s views are. Baron Markham seems intent on pushing nursing back into the Charles Dickens fantasy he had as a boy instead of respecting a profession which is critical to patient-safety.
Nurses still have bills to pay and we can’t starve whilst this peer is paid thousands just for turning up to Parliament. We need to vote yes to striking to bring our profession back to a safe level of pay.”
