Learn from the past but look to the future

So, where to now? Our recent historic NHS strike action is at an end in England but our campaign to provide fair pay for nursing lives on. The outcome of the ballot on continuing industrial action was far from unequivocal – nearly half of the eligible membership took part and, of those, an overwhelming majority voted to continue with strike action.

However, thanks to the government’s draconian industrial action laws, that weight of feeling amongst our membership counts for nothing. With fewer than 50% of eligible members choosing to use their vote our industrial action story in England in the NHS is at an end. For now. But be in no doubt – we will continue to take the fight to the government to demand the remuneration and recognition that our members deserve. Watch this space for our next steps.

At the forefront of our minds also are our members who work in the independent and voluntary sectors, including those employed by general practice. Their need for a fair wage for the work they do is just as great and just as urgent. Our fight for fair pay knows no boundaries and every member, indeed every member of the nursing family, must receive the financial support and opportunities for career development that their dedication and highly skilled work deserves.

It would also be deeply inaccurate to say that industrial action is over across the whole of the North West. At the time of writing, our members on the Isle of Man have just taken their own strike action, the first of its kind for Manx Care employees and a moment of huge significance for those on the island. With significantly different rules dictating the terms of action on the Isle of Man to those in England, Tuesday’s strike has the potential to be the first of many days of protest as there is no legally enforceable limit for how long the action can last. Whilst we will always work towards a swift and reasonable conclusion to strikes and remain hopeful that Manx Care will agree to reopen dialogue to resolve the dispute, our members showed that they are prepared to stand firm.

As with the England-wide strikes, it is a matter of great pride both to me and our whole regional team to see the dignity with which our members on the picket lines conduct themselves. Vociferous but respectful, the ‘powers-that-be’ can be in no doubt about our Isle of Man members’ determination. Unless an improved offer from Manx Care is forthcoming, we will go again. Please ensure you keep an eye on your emails, our website and our social media pages to make sure you don’t miss any important communications and events. Click here to find our Twitter, Facebook and Instagram feeds.

Away from pay, we have had a significant anniversary to mark in the past month, as the national treasure that is the National Health Service reached the grand old age of 75. Today, our NHS finds itself under siege, diminished by years of under investment and struggling under the rapid outstripping of demand over capacity. However, there can be no doubt that the heart and soul of this bedrock of British healthcare, born right here in Trafford in Greater Manchester, remain in rude health. And that is due, in no small part, to the dedication of all of you.

Of course, we cannot celebrate 75 years since the inception of the NHS without also noting the enormous contribution made to the fledgling healthcare system by the passengers of the Empire Windrush, which docked in June of the same year. A great many of the NHS’ first employees were passengers on that ship and they, along with a large contingent of nurses brought over from Ireland, bolstered the workforce and made an invaluable contribution in its early days. We owe them all a debt of thanks.

I hope you took the opportunity to celebrate these milestones in some small way. You can read the recollections of our Senior Regional Officer, Sumbo Campbell, an Internationally Educated Nurse, on her own personal history with the NHS in her recent blog here.

On the subject of IENs, I am delighted that this August we will be joining in the celebration of South Asian Heritage Month. Our members have been invited to an exclusive tour of the South Asia gallery at the Manchester Museum, a space where the stories, experiences and views of our South Asian healthcare community will be shared and celebrated. Find further details of this wonderful opportunity on our events page here.

Looking further ahead, we’re looking forward to sharing our plans with you for both our Regional Conference and our Black History Month celebrations, both of which will be coming up in the autumn. All of our events are publicised on the events pages of our regional website and on our social media feeds and we’ll make sure all members who are eligible to attend an event our notified by email a few weeks in advance. If you’re not receiving our emails, check that your contact details and contact preferences are up to date on MyRCN.

For those of you with school-age children, the annual childcare/work juggling act that is the summer holidays has just begun. I wish you all the best of luck with that endeavour and send you all our best wishes for the summer ahead.