Union tables claim to increase pay rise offered by Northampton mental health hospital

A union representing workers at St Andrew’s Healthcare in Northampton has tabled a claim to improve the pay increase offer.

UNISON has formally proposed that St Andrew's employees receive either a £2,000 rise at all career levels or the current rate of Retail Price Index (RPI) - presently 11.8 percent - whichever is higher.

The union says that St Andrew’s introduced its latest pay award - in April this year - without trade union agreement, which broadly amounted to a three percent increase to be awarded to eligible staff.

UNISON regional organiser Gareth Eales said: “Despite us having good relations with St Andrew’s in the main, the imposition of a pay rise without agreement is not the normal way for employers to do business or work in partnership.

“UNISON’s clear view is that the issue of pay needs to be reopened and resolved satisfactorily.

“The cost of living crisis is severe and St Andrew’s as one of Northampton’s biggest employers should recognise that.

“We await an adequate formal response to our pay claim and any negotiations thereafter.

“The inability to reach an agreement may culminate in us logging a formal dispute, which may include a ballot of our members.”

In response, bosses at St Andrew’s said they believed UNISON was “pleased” with the offer.

A St Andrew’s spokeswoman said: “A report this week by Pro Bono Economics (PBE) highlighted the challenges that currently exist within the charity sector in terms of meeting the pay demands of the wider economy.

“Despite this, as a not-for-profit organisation, which is committed to ensuring all members of staff are treated fairly, in April we gave all of our lowest paid staff an 8.3 percent pay rise. All other eligible employees were given a three percent pay rise.

“This year’s pay award was effective from April 1, 2022 to help prepare our staff for the cost of living crisis and to help ease the burden of rising prices.

“We have regular and frequent meetings and communication with UNISON and at the time we believed they were pleased with the increase we were introducing.

“We also explained that we would further review our payment structure once the NHS pay review had been announced, which we’re in the process of doing now.”