Members were asked to accept or reject a 3.1% pay rise for 2018 and 3% pay rise for 2019.
On a turnout of 63%; 62% of members voted to reject the offer with 38% accepting.
Nurses have been angered as the below inflation offer failed to address any of the concerns raised by the College going back to 2012 when the promise of pay parity and workforce modernisation was agreed as a condition of the 2012/13/14 pay offer.
Lindsay Meeks, RCN South East Regional Director says: “The fact that so many of our members turned out to have their say speaks volumes. For too long nursing pay has lagged behind their allied health professional colleagues and our members have said enough is enough. Nurses aren’t asking for the world, they are asking that their world is made comfortable to live in with a salary that befits the work and responsibility that they have.
“Inevitably members will want to know what happens next – the answer is that we will be contacting the Jersey Advisory and Conciliation Service to mediate a conversation between ourselves and the States. We are also meeting with members tomorrow [Wednesday 9 Jan] to discuss next steps including asking them if they wish to make a request to RCN Council for industrial action to be pursued. Industrial action is an absolute last resort and we need to be sure that we have exhausted all possible avenues before taking this route.”
