I wanted to take this opportunity as the RCN industrial action ballot closes to say a big THANK YOU to you for supporting us in the pay campaign and taking time out to complete and send off your ballot paper. Strike action is a last resort but seems to be the only way we can get the Welsh Government to sit up and listen.
ENOUGH is ENOUGH!
I particularly wanted to give a shout out to the Representatives, Voting Volunteers, Branch Officials, and Board members who have been out from early in the morning to late at night to speak with you about the pay campaign and what strike action will look like. You have also played a massive part in getting the word out by putting posters up, talking with peers and engaging with social media posts.
It was a privilege to meet so many of you as I travelled around Wales promoting the ballot. The dedication and commitment that you have for your patients really shone through and reinforced why our members decided to enter into an industrial action ballot. Many of you talked about poor staffing levels, having to stay on shift late as you were the only substantive registered nurse and the difficulties you are experiencing with the current economic crisis.
Many of you also when considering how to vote showed concern for patient safety if a strike took place. Once again putting patients first. I hope I was able to give you reassurance that we will work with you and Health Boards to keep patients safe and that when Northern Ireland nurses went on strike no patient was harmed.
I met some inspiring Health Care Support Workers who were not only promoting the campaign but were also recruiting their peers to become members – you would be excellent Representatives or activists.
If any of you are interested in becoming a Representative, you can get more information on our RCN Reps webpage.
So, what next? It will take a few days for our independent Scrutineer to verify the ballot outcomes and for the results to be sent to RCN Wales. Your elected members in RCN Council and RCN Wales Board will analyse the data and will decide on the next steps. As soon as those decisions are made, we will contact you via email to let you know the outcome and whether you will be joining the picket line in the coming months.
If you would like to find out more about strike action, you can read our Industrial action strike ballot FAQs
I am interested to hear your thoughts on the pay campaign. You can tweet me @nichughes1 or email CommunicationsWales@rcn.org.uk.
Take care and stay safe
Helen Whyley, Director, RCN Wales, and Nicky Hughes, Associate Director (Employment Relations), RCN Wales, out on the campaign trail.
Nicky Hughes, Associate Director (Employment Relations), RCN Wales, with nursing staff at Princess of Wales Hospital
Pets supporting the Fair Pay for Nursing campaign!
