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GMB, the union for ambulance workers, has announced it will be holding industrial action on February 6, the same day nurses are also set to strike.
The union said that the government had made things worse by demonising the ambulance workers who provided life and limb cover on strike days and said they were playing political games with their scaremongering.
It comes as nursing staff at 55 NHS trusts across England are going on strike today and tomorrow (18 and 19 January), as part of their ongoing dispute over nursing pay and patient safety.
The College said that if progress isn’t made by the end of January, strike action will be escalated on 6 and 7 February to include members at 73 NHS trusts in England and all but one NHS employer in Wales.
GMB announced that paramedics, emergency care assistants, call handlers and other staff who are members of the union will also be striking on 6 February, as well as on 20 February, 6 March and 20 March.
Ministers have so far refused to take part in serious talks
The RCN hopes these strikes will force the UK government to open formal negotiations on the below-inflation NHS pay award for this financial year, which the dispute is about. But ministers have so far refused to take part in serious talks, choosing strikes instead.
RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive Pat Cullen said: “Today’s strike action by nursing staff is a modest escalation before a sharp increase in under three weeks from now. If a week is a long time for Rishi Sunak, three weeks is the time he needs to get this resolved.
“People aren’t dying because nurses are striking. Nurses are striking because people are dying. That is how severe things are in the NHS and it is time the Prime Minister led a fight for its future. Today’s record number of unfilled nurse jobs cannot be left to get worse. Pay nursing staff fairly to turn this around and give the public the care they deserve.”
Rachel Harrison, GMB National Secretary added: “GMB’s ambulance workers are angry. In their own words ‘they are done’. Our message to the Government is clear – talk pay now. Ministers have made things worse by demonising the ambulance workers who provided life and limb cover on strike days – playing political games with their scaremongering.
“The only way to solve this dispute is a proper pay offer. But it seems the cold, dead hands of the Number 10 and 11 Downing Street are stopping this from happening. In the face of government inaction, we are left with no choice but industrial action. GMB ambulance workers are determined, they’re not going to back down. It’s up for this Government to get serious on pay. We are waiting.”
Combined strike will pose a significant challenge, NHS leaders say
The NHS Confederation said that they were increasingly concerned about the escalation in industrial action. It said it will lead to a greater war of attrition between the government and unions spanning several months at a time when NHS services are seeing unprecedented pressures.
This combined strike of nurses and ambulance workers will pose a more significant challenge to services than the industrial action they have seen to date.
Chief executive Matthew Taylor added: “Health leaders will now be intensifying plans and preparations for the combined strike of nurses and ambulance workers next month. They will continue to work closely with local union representatives to ensure the delivery of safe care and to minimise patient disruption.
“We’re increasingly concerned about the cumulative impact of strike days and record demand – the longer this vicious cycle continues the longer it will take for the NHS to tackle the elective backlog.
“Leaders across the NHS are getting increasingly frustrated with the impasse we seem to have reached – in spite of record demand for care and ongoing industrial action November was one of the most productive months for the NHS on record. Our members want to see government come to the table with unions to engage meaningfully on pay so that this situation can be resolved.”