FIGURES recently obtained by London Health Emergency have exposed the fact that nurses can immediately add at least 50% to their wages by opting to work for an agency rather than directly for the NHS.
A schedule of rates circulated to staff by an agency called Staffing Enterprise show that an E grade nurse working in intensive care can get a basic rate of £13.30 an hour compared to the NHS rate of £8.70.
With full enhancements some specialist nurses can expect to earn as much as £35 an hour through the agency - twice as much as their NHS colleagues.
Some agencies have even begun to offer nurses some of the "fringe" benefits which previously kept staff in the NHS, including paid sick leave and holiday entitlements. Many staff have already opted to vote with their feet, and have gone over to the agencies blasting a hole in establishment. staffing levels, and driving costs through the roof.
A recent report to the Royal London Hospitals Trust underlines the impact that the drift of staff towards the agencies is having on the NHS:
"A key issue in relation to the Trust's activity performance was the shortage of trained nursing staff and the additional costs of having to employ agency staff. In some specialties nursing staff were leaving the Trust's employ to sign on as agency nurses, as they could earn substantially more than the Trust paid."
The fear is that many more staff, angry at this years 4.7% pay award, will join the stampede over to the agencies. LHE has heard of some key units where the entire team of nursemare considering going over to the agency wholesale, with devastating consequences for NHS budgets. a fight the