More than 1,000 workers employed by the South Central, South East Coast, and Yorkshire ambulance services have voted to join NHS pay strikes, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today. 

The front-line workers will join around 2,800 of their colleagues in West Midlands, East Midlands, North West, North East, and Wales already striking over pay. 

Growing anger

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “These new ballot results show the growing angers and resentment among ambulance workers at grassroots levels. Our members can’t understand why the government is missing in action and refusing to even enter talks to resolve this dispute. 

 “The government is solely to blame for pushing the NHS to breaking point after years of pay and service cuts. Prime minister Rishi Sunak’s refusal to negotiate an end to this dispute shows he doesn’t care or is out of his depth.” 

Dates to be announced

Strike dates for South Central, South East Coast, and Yorkshire ambulances will be announced in the coming days.

As with previous strikes, Unite’s representatives will be working at a regional level to agree derogations to ensure that emergency life and limb cover will be in place during the strikes. Other derogations will ensure that patients needing lifesaving treatment, such as renal care and cancer treatment, will be transported to their appointments.

Mounting crisis

Unite national lead officer Onay Kasab said: “Our members know that without a proper pay rise NHS job vacancies will continue to mount and the crisis in patient care will become a catastrophe.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

Around 4,000 health and social care workers in Northern Ireland are also striking, including members of the ambulance service. In total, around 8,000 UK health sector Unite members are involved in industrial action over

For media enquiries ONLY please contact Unite senior communications officer Barckley Sumner on 07802 329235 or 0203 371 2067.

Email: [email protected]

Unite is the UK and Ireland’s leading union fighting to protect and advance jobs, pay and conditions for members working across all sectors of the economy. The general secretary is Sharon Graham.