NHS Pay Review Body process gets under way


Pay increases for non-medical NHS staff were determined through collective bargaining last year, rather than on the advice of the NHS Pay Review Body (PRB).


Nevertheless, the PRB has been asked to monitor the implementation and impact of those three-year awards in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. And the joint unions have now weighed in with their own submission. 


They acknowledge that lifting the pay cap for nursing staff was a “significant step in the right direction”, but it falls short of making up for lost earnings during several years of pay restraint. Although average annual earnings increased by between 2.1% and 9.3% between 2011 and 2018, the rate of inflation increased by 24%. 


Scotland has its own three-year deal. Jean Freeman, cabinet secretary for health and sport in the Scottish government, said she couldn’t identify substantive issues that would form the basis for a remit, but would “continue to observe the process closely”. 


https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/remit-letters-links-to-evidence-and-timetable-for-nhsprbs-2019-pay-round