Glasgow health visitor team leaders balloted on strike action

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is balloting health visitor team leaders employed by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde on potential strike action in a dispute over delayed job evaluation processes.

RCN Scotland opened a statutory ballot on Tuesday 5 May asking members what action they would support, up to and including strikes.

The union claims that the health board has failed to carry out a job evaluation after health visitor team leaders in Glasgow City Health and Social Care Partnership updated their job description more than two years ago and requested a re-evaluation.

According to RCN Scotland, the revised job description was agreed by the line manager and submitted for evaluation in July 2025.

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However, the union said the health board had not followed the nationally agreed process and the application had yet to be considered by the job evaluation panel.

The union also claimed the health board had requested further amendments to the job description despite it already being agreed locally.

Joint trade unions have formally raised the dispute with the health board.

The RCN said concerns had previously been raised about the health board’s approach to job evaluation and adherence to nationally agreed processes.

Following an earlier dispute involving district nurses, the Scottish Terms and Conditions Committee issued updated guidance stating that all health boards were expected to follow the national process.

Philip Coghill, head of pay, terms and conditions at RCN Scotland, said: ‘This is yet another example of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde believing it can operate out with nationally agreed protocols and actively suppressing and demoralising frontline staff.

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‘The health board’s behaviour not only directly contravenes national guidance but is also unfair treatment of a group of staff who deserve to have their expertise and skills recognised.’

He said the union remained in discussions with the health board but added that members had expressed ‘deep dissatisfaction and anger’ over the situation.

‘Taking industrial action will always be a last resort but NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde have left these health visitor team leaders with no alternative,’ Mr Coghill added.

A spokesperson for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said: ‘We greatly value the work of our health visitor team leaders and are working closely with our trade union colleagues to resolve this matter as quickly as possible.

‘This will include agreeing an accurate job description for these roles, which will then be submitted to a job evaluation panel.’

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The balloting follows separate strike action by health visitors working for Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board in Wales in a dispute over pay band assessments.

The Unite union recently issued notice of a further two months of action by its members.