Historic nurses strike begins in England
Key nurses in the UK’s National Health System (NHS) joined the wave of strikes, which many sectors across the country began demanding a reasonable pay increase in the face of rising cost of living and inflation.
In the strike vote of the RCN (Royal College of Nursing) union, which represents nurses, for the first time in its 106-year history, the strike began after a majority of nurses voted to go on strike .
Thousands of appointments and surgeries were canceled due to the strike, which was expected to be attended by approximately 100,000 nurses. On the other hand, nurses working in hospitals, chemotherapy, emergency services, dialysis, critical care units, neonatal and pediatric intensive care units will continue to care for patients.
RCN, which has more than 300,000 members nationwide, demands a 19 percent wage increase, while the government argues that this demand cannot be met. The nurses will go on strike on December 20 if their demands are not met.
More than 10,000 ambulance and emergency services workers will also go on strike on December 21 and 28 in England and Wales over a pay rise and disagreement over working conditions.
‘TRAGIC DAY FOR THE NATIONAL HEALTH SYSTEM’
Pat Cullen, General Secretary and CEO of the RCN Union, said in a statement that the public certainly understood why the nurses went on strike.
“They’re standing outside in the cold this morning,” Cullen said. They were thrown out in the cold closing the doors by this government. Today is a tragic day for nurses, a tragic day for the NHS.” he performed the assessment of it.
Stating that he met with British Health Minister Steve Barclay last week, Cullen continued his words as follows:
“After he called me for an interview, I went into his office hopeful and there was an air of optimism. We walked into that room and it was clear that Steve Barclay wanted to talk about everything except salaries, and I did most of the talking. Not a penny was put on the table for the nurses. He hung up the subject and walked away, his back to the infirmary and his back to the patients.”
GROWTH OF THE STRIKE WAVE
Many unions, arguing that wages are falling in the face of rising cost of living and inflation in the country, and therefore do not accept the proposed wage increase below inflation of more than 10 percent per year, are taking the decision to go on strike. one after the other.
There is a wide range of occupational groups, especially teachers, bus drivers, stevedores, journalists, civil servants, criminal lawyers, railway, airport, university, aviation and postal workers, who participated in the action to quit smoking.
In addition to strike decisions, thousands of people protesting cost of living and austerity policies frequently organize rallies and marches across the country, especially in the capital London.
The government, on the other hand, is looking for ways to deal with the rising wave of strikes. In this context, the British government warned that it could “respond harshly” to unions that insist on going on strike and assured that they are working on new laws against the strike wave. (AA)