AFTER MONTHS of hallhearted campaigning. procrastination and back-pedalling, the biggest health union, UNISON has eventually signed a sell-out deal on NHS pay.
Gone without trace is the union's original 8.5 percent ciple that was the real sticking point of the whole campaign leading up to a LABOUR/UNIONS the defence of national pay against the imposition of local pay bargaining.
The new deal agreed by UNISON combines the worst ing with the pretence of a national deal. In a highly complex arrangement, which has batfled activists (and requires diagrams to explain it to managers in the to negotiate pay locally on a Trust-by-Trust basis: but at the end of the year the level brought up to the 'average". weak mandate - was no doubt received with rellet by most other health unmore than likely that Trust real appetite for a fight. committed to hold pay down of Nursing, who will now to minimal if any increase -resulting in a minimal 'averThe Tory objective - of sector conference due to open later this month in Blackpool it remains to be ceded. But without the possi- seen whether the unconfliet with the platform. enough organised and led to ao it alone in a serious of. fensive on pay against their UNISON's desperation to do a deal - and avold calling strike action from what appears to have been a very