NHS staff to strike for nine more days in pay row

A number of specialist NHS staff at two Gloucestershire hospitals will walk out for nine more days amid a dispute over their pay and grading.

Thirty-seven phlebotomists - staff who take blood samples - from Gloucestershire Royal Hospital and Cheltenham General Hospital took industrial action from Monday to Wednesday this week.

The Unison union says the NHS trust that runs both hospitals has "repeatedly missed deadlines to correct the workers' pay". The staff are set to continue their strike from Monday to Thursday next week, and from Monday 31 March to Friday 4 April.

The trust said no blood would be taken from patients during the industrial action and apologised to patients.

Dawny Elliott, who works at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital, said she and other phlebotomists played "a vital role" in the NHS.

"Every diagnosis starts with a phlebotomist. Yet we're feeling very overworked, undervalued, and underpaid," she said.

"My colleagues and I are passionate about our jobs, but many of us are struggling to make ends meet.

"Some are even taking on second jobs just to get by."

A Unison spokesperson said: "The trust has ignored a fair job evaluation process and attempted to get out of its obligations to assess the phlebotomists' skills and responsibilities,"

"Despite clear evidence that these health workers should be on band three of the NHS Agenda for Change pay scale, the trust managers continue to pay them at the lower band two grade, meaning they are losing out on around £1 an hour."

Chris Roche, south west regional organiser at Unison, said managers had been given "more than a year to put things right".

"Now, faced with yet another failure by their employer, phlebotomists have no choice but to escalate their action," Mr Roche said.

Kevin McNamara, chief executive of Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, says the trust "recognises and appreciates the valuable contribution" phlebotomists make.

"We will continue to work closely in partnership with our local union representatives and phlebotomists on resolving these issues," he added.

"Contingency plans are in place and we are advising patients who have an appointment at either Cheltenham General Hospital (CGH) or Gloucestershire Royal Hospital (GRH) during periods of industrial action to attend as normal unless they hear from us directly to advise otherwise.

"However, there will be no phlebotomy service/blood taken from patients during industrial action.

"We would like to apologise for any inconvenience in advance."

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