The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) will continue to put pressure on the government to deliver fair pay for nursing in the NHS in England but turnout in a statutory strike ballot did not surpass the 50 per cent legal threshold for action.
In the ballot, over 100,000 RCN members voted in favour of strike action - around 84 per cent of the total number of people who voted.
To clear the turnout threshold, approximately 140,000 ballot papers needed to be returned in the post and only 122,000 were received by the closing date of Friday 23 June.
With an overall turnout of 43.4%, the ballot did not reach the required threshold dictated by the 2016 Trade Union Act for a mandate to be achieved.
RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive, Pat Cullen, in an email to members, said:
“To every one of you who took part, whether by voting or encouraging others to, thank you. We have so much to be proud of.
“While the vast majority of members who returned their ballot papers voted in favour of strike action, we did not meet the 50% turnout threshold necessary for us to be able to take further strike action.
“While this will be disappointing for many of you, the fight for the fair pay and safe staffing that our profession, our patients, and our NHS deserves, is far from over.
“This week, the government will say it has a plan for the NHS workforce. I am seeing the Prime Minister this afternoon to hear him out and to ask him the questions you wanted answering on his commitment to nurses and support workers.
“I know staff morale is low and the staffing crisis is set to worsen without immediate action. I will be telling him this today.
“We have started something special - the voice of nursing has never been stronger and we’re going to keep using it.”
Ends
Notes to Editors
Earlier in 2023 RCN members voted to reject the latest pay offer from government with 54% of eligible members urging the government to return to the negotiating table.
The Health Secretary re-opened negotiations on pay in February 2023.
