26 April 2002
Negotiations on Agenda for Change, the pay restructuring exercise, should be concluded before the end of the year.
The Royal College of Nursing expects the wage bill to rise by £3bn over five years as jobs are re-categorised according to skill levels and training, and as the mainly female employees' pay is brought into line with that of men in similar jobs.
At the RCN's annual conference in Harrogate this week, Alan Milburn said the extra £40bn promised to the NHS in last week's Budget would 'buy a different sort of health service'. Nurses would get a fair deal, he said, but pay rises would be linked to reform.
Earlier, RCN general secretary Beverley Malone said the cash should be used to increase nurses' salaries. 'I'm not convinced that this year's pay rise is going to make nurses feel appreciated. Nurses need to be able to pay for housing and childcare without doing extra bank or agency work.
'Pay is the single most effective way to increase recruitment, improve retention and demonstrate to nurses that they are valued.'
However, Milburn insisted: 'Investment in pay, just like every other area of future NHS spending, has to pass our acid test – it must contribute to expansion in capacity, it must bring about increases in productivity and it must deliver improved performance.
'This will not be a "something-for-nothing" arrangement,' he stressed.
'Agenda for Change is about paying people according to what they do. The more they do the more they can get. As nurses take on new roles and responsibilities they have a right to expect a fair reward. In return, the NHS has a responsibility to gain improvements in flexibility and productivity.'
Milburn said the NHS was adopting family-friendly employment policies, adding that within two years all nurses would be offered subsidised childcare.
PFapr2002
