• NHS staff from 13 trade unions accept the government’s new pay offer
• Pay offer will see Agenda for Change staff receive an average 6.5% increase over three years
• We say it is vital that the government honours its commitment to fully fund the pay rise to all Agenda for Change staff.

NHS staff from 13 trade unions have voted to accept the government’s new pay offer – which will see staff on Agenda for Change contracts receive an average 6.5% pay uplift over three years.

Responding to the announcement on wide acceptance of the NHS pay deal, the head of analysis at NHS Providers, Phillippa Hentsch, said:

“We are pleased to hear this deal has been so widely accepted by health trade unions.

“NHS staff have borne the brunt of almost a decade of austerity through the squeeze on pay.

NHS staff have borne the brunt of almost a decade of austerity through the squeeze on pay.

Phillippa Hentsch    

“It is important that they are rewarded fairly, and this deal should help trusts in their efforts to recruit and retain the staff they need.

“However it is also vital that the government honours its commitment to fully fund the pay rise to all Agenda for Change staff.

“Failure to do so would raise the risk of some staff being left behind, or the additional costs falling to providers which are already financially overstretched. And that could impact on the quality of care they are able to provide.”