Are you a UNISON member employed by the NHS in England?
Get ready to vote in the indicative ballot 4 Nov – 5 Dec 2021
Do you want to take action over your 3% NHS pay award?
For months, UNISON asked for pay talks to agree the decent NHS pay rise you really deserve, but the government refused. After months of dither and delay, it imposed its pay decision of 3% for NHS staff in England. The pay rise and associated backpay went in your September pay packet.
4 out of 5 members who took part in our summer consultation said they wanted to challenge the 3% and were prepared to take industrial action.
But only a minority voted, leaving a silent majority who have not told us where they stand.
The only way to improve the 3% is by taking collective and sustained industrial action that forces the government to reconsider. If we’re to do that we need to run a formal industrial action ballot. But we need to be more confident that enough members actually back that course of action. So we’re running this indicative industrial action ballot first.
How will the indicative ballot work?
The indicative ballot will run from 4 November to 5 December 2021, and eligible members will be emailed a secure personal link to vote online.
We want the result of the vote to reflect what a large proportion of people really want to do: we need to hear from at least 45% of members to have confidence that we could reach the level of turnout that trade union laws require.
Your voice counts, so make your vote count.
We’ve produced a set of FAQs that explain how the indicative ballot will work, why you’re being asked to vote, and what the pay award means for you.
Update your details today
It is really important for your contact details to be up to date so we can get in touch with you. The most important information we need right now is your employer, email address, and mobile number. You can update your details at MyUNISON.
Employed by the NHS in England but not in UNISON yet? If you join by 23 November, you can have a vote and be counted too!
What action can I take now?
We need you to keep talking about pay with colleagues and encourage any non-members to join us by 23 November so they can have their say too. Head to MyUNISON if you need to update your email or home address and look out for the email with your ballot in.
- Get in touch with your local branch if you’d like to know more and help with the campaign.
- Write to your MP and ask them to support a real pay-rise.
- Print our leaflet and add it to a noticeboard or staff room
Activist?
Head over to the activist hub for all the tips and resources you need to get out the vote.
What would the 2k increase mean for NHS staff
- A £2,000 increase to every pay point would mean:
- A pay rise of over £1 per hour for all staff
- A fair and equitable rise, reflecting the contribution of all staff through 2020
- A minimum of £10.23 per hour – taking the NHS pay floor above the Real Living Wage
- A Band 5 starting salary of nearly £27,000
- For Bands 1 – 6 a rise of at least double RPI inflation.
