Nurses in UK hold largest strike in 2023
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The RCN strike, which began Sunday evening, is expected to affect half of the British government's National Health Service (NHS) trusts.
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NHS nurses strike in London, Britain, on January 18, 2023. (Reuters)
Nurses throughout the UK have gone on strike as part of a protest action by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) trade union, in what they call their greatest work stoppage to date, as the country's cost-of-living problem worsens.
Last Monday, the UK government stated that it was seeking a court order to put an end to a planned strike by nurses working for the government-run National Health Service.
The strike, which began Sunday evening, is expected to affect half of the British government's National Health Service (NHS) trusts, with nurses from A&E (Accident and Emergency), critical care, and cancer services joining the picket lines for the first time.
The strike, described by the government as "incredibly disruptive for patients," is set to last until Monday at midnight, however, the union has agreed that nursing staff can be brought in for select crucial areas.
The 28-hour walkout comes ahead of a vital meeting on Tuesday between a number of health unions, cabinet ministers, and NHS management to debate the government's 5% salary offer.
The RCN had already rejected the government's salary increase offer, prompting this new walkout, their third this year in the conflict over wages, recruitment, and retention in the NHS.
Other NHS strikes also scheduled
Members of the Unite union are striking at several NHS trusts and ambulance services in England on Monday and Tuesday after voting to reject the latest salary offer. Meanwhile, UK Health Secretary Steve Barclay slammed the RCN's strike decision as "premature" and disrespectful to other unions attending the Tuesday meeting.
It also warned that staffing levels in some regions would be "exceptionally low, lower than on previous strike days," and that the number of postponed appointments as a result of the strike would reach half a million next week.
The RCN strike began at 20:00 BST on Sunday and was meant to go until Tuesday, but a High Court judge determined it would be illegal since a six-month mandate for action had passed.
Meanwhile, Unite members at Yorkshire Ambulance Service and Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Trust in central London will begin a strike on Monday and march in protest.
Then, on Tuesday, members of the Unite union at the South Central, South East Coast, and West Midlands ambulance trusts, as well as workers at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust and Pathology Partnership, East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, and Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, will go on strike.
Earlier this month, members of the union rejected a government pay offer and immediately announced an escalation in strike action.
The refusal is a setback for the government, which had hoped for an end to the crippling health sector strike that has seen thousands of operations and appointments canceled.
