Strike to hit Mid Yorkshire Hospitals Trust again after offer rejected
BITTER DISPUTE: Unions are planning more strike action at Dewsbury and District Hospital.
UNIONS are planning further strike action at the district’s hospitals after workers rejected an offer to resolve a dispute over pay and jobs.
Plans to impose pay cuts of up to £2,800-a-year on admin and clerical staff have already led to four strike days at Mid Yorkshire Hospitals Trust.
Bosses at cash-strapped Mid Yorkshire, which runs Pinderfields, Pontefract and Dewsbury hospitals, want to downgrade the salaries of staff including medical secretaries and receptionists to help save £24m.
Unions Unison and Unite have refused to accept the changes, which they say unfairly target low paid and mainly female members of staff.
Now a further strike is likely after a financial incentive for affected staff was rejected.
Management offered to increase the period staff would be protected from the pay cut from a year to 18 months and give them six months pay protection in a lump sum.
Graham Briggs, Mid Yorkshire’s director of HR, said: “Whilst we remain open to meaningful discussions on finding a way to resolve the current dispute, for example we have suggested the engagement of ACAS, this offer has been turned down.
“We must reduce our costs and in particular our pay bill and it is disappointing that our continued attempts to work with union representatives to find a mutually agreeable solution for the Trust and the members they represent continue to be rejected.”
An announcement from unions on further industrial action is expected next week.
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Saturday 25 May 2013
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