Nurses in the south are the most hesitant, while those in the north show overwhelming support.
Nurses appear to be split on if to vote in favour of strike action.
A poll of over 7,000 nurses undertaken by NursingNotes found that nurses remain somewhat divided on if to vote in favour of taking strike action.
Huge regional variations were found in the data, with those in London (56%) and the north of England (67%) having a higher level of support and those in the southwest (33%) having the lowest of all.
The vast majority of nurses in Scotland (76%), Wales (55%) and Northern Ireland (53%) said they would vote in favour of taking strike action.
Divided.
NursingNotes asked nurses for the main reason they either had voted or intended to vote the way they did.
A mental health nurse from Scotland explained, “It is time nurses stood up and had a backbone. Holyrood and Westminster have taken us for granted for far too long.”
“I’m not sure why we are even calling this a campaign for a pay rise?! It is taking back what we are owed by this government.”
In contrast, a community nurse from Cornwall added, “I can’t leave my vulnerable patients (who I see on a daily basis) without the care they need.
“We are already a lot better paid than our counterparts [in social care] or aboard… The whole country is going through a cost of living crisis at the moment”. Concluding, “We need to stick together.”
Use your voice.
Responding to the data, Nurses United called for a final push to ensure ballot papers are received in time for the Royal College of Nursing vote closing next week.
Lead organiser Anthony Johnson said, “Right now, we’re seeing how important it is to use your voice to shape society.
“As nurses, we have borne the brunt of the chaos that comes from underfunding and privatising our NHS. After 12 years, the Conservatives have not listened to any profession unless they take strike action.
“That is why it’s great that so many nurses have voted yes to strike action, and now the rest of us need to do so too – to protect ourselves, our patients and bring our NHS back to safety”
