Hospital pay protest called off

Staff are being paid monthly instead of weekly

A planned two-day strike by staff at two Wirral hospitals has been called off after an agreement was reached in a dispute over changes in pay.

About 180 workers, such as porters and technicians, at Arrowe Park and Clatterbridge hospitals had been due to walk out on Thursday.

The row was sparked when weekly-paid workers were told they would be paid monthly.

Staff claimed the move left them struggling to pay bills.

Members of the Unite union had previously staged a two-day walkout in protest over the changes on 25 July.

Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust said it had already introduced a number of schemes to help facilitate the transition.

As well as the ability to request an advance of pay and for some staff to access locked away or frozen annual leave, the trust also made a £60 goodwill payment to all staff affected.

We are pleased that the matter has been resolved although the whole incident has caused a great deal of hardship for our members Brian Nelson, Unite

Following talks with the Unite union, the trust has now also agreed to give an additional two weeks advance of pay which only has to be paid back when the person leaves or retires.

Staff who had also taken out loans with the hospital to bridge the payment gap will now have 18 months to re-pay the loan instead of eight months.

The trust also has agreed to a commitment to look at collective bargaining issues with the union in the future.

Brian Nelson, of Unite, said: "We are pleased that the matter has been resolved although the whole incident has caused a great deal of hardship for our members."

A spokesman for Wirral Hospital Trust said: "We have reached a mutually-acceptable agreement with Unite that further extends the range of measures we have in place to support any hardship staff may be experiencing as a result of the change."