NHS staff in Northern Ireland will receive their 2017-18 pay rise, the Department of Health has announced, after the increase was held up for months by political deadlock.
The one per cent rise recommended by the pay review body earlier this year will finally be processed in the comings months but backdated.
The breakthrough came when civil servants approved a pay policy, a week after health unions wrote a joint letter setting out their powers to do so.
Claire Ronald, senior negotiating officer for the CSP in Northern Ireland, said:
‘This is welcome news for physiotherapy staff who have been waiting for months for this pay rise.
‘We are pleased that civil servants took on board our advice and took action themselves to end the impasse.
‘It’s frustrating that there will be a further delay in actually processing the increase but it does at least provide some certainty for staff.
‘However, it bears repeating that NHS staff in Northern Ireland are still the lowest paid in the UK, an unacceptable gap that must be closed.
‘That’s why we’ll join other health unions in pushing for a future pay rise that fairly reflects the enormous contribution made by NHS staff in Northern Ireland.’
Note to editors
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1. The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy is the UK’s professional, educational and trade union body. We have more than 52,000 members, including chartered physiotherapists, physiotherapy students and support workers.
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