THE MISERABLE 1% pay offer to nurses and midwives has created a new eruption of anger - and a historic vote by midwives to drop their no-strike rule.
Over 80 percent of the Royal College of Midwives voted to drop the 115-year ban on industrial action, and the professional body is now setting the pace in the fight for a decent pay increase.
Even the Royal College of Nursing, traditionally a dead weight of conservatism among health workers, has been making April, and will last six noises about possibly con- weeks. sidering doing something, though readers are advised not to hold their breath waiting for them to call a No rush There is no formal prohiTrusts. bition on strikes in UNISON, but no rush to call or build for action either.
A 'major consultation of health service members', to find out if they are will- HS ing to take industrial action, will not begin until UNISON, which claims Though Trust bosses are scarcely quaking with fear, strong support on March 30 is essential if UNISON's timid national leadership is not to seize on a poor turnout and RCN inaction as an excuse for doing nothing. from south London to Leeds in search of a neurosurgery bed - Labour calls weakly for endless meaningless 'inquiries' and 'reviews'.
There are even hints that Blair's modernisers might be preparing a historic retreat on that most sacred of welfare state ideals: opposition to private medicine.
All of which goes to show that scrapping Clause Four would be bad for your health.
WHO• CARES CARERS CN NIS