The Welsh government is working through ‘the details’ of an above-inflation pay rise for public sector staff, with an announcement expected for early next month.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and British Medical Association (BMA) in Wales told Nursing in Practice that a pay update is anticipated for around the start of September.
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The announcement is ‘likely’ to focus on Agenda for Change (AfC) staff and doctors only, Nursing in Practice understands.
A general practice nurse (GPN) uplift is negotiated separately through the General Medical Services (GMS) contract review which ‘should be starting imminently,’ the RCN in Wales said.
The update comes after nurses and other healthcare staff across Scotland were this week offered a pay increase of 5.5% for 2024-25.
The offer, if accepted by trade union members, will be backdated to 1 April 2024 for the approximately 170,000 NHS Agenda for Change (AfC) staff in Scotland, including nurses and midwives.
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A spokesperson for BMA Wales said the union has made the Welsh government ‘aware of the frustration’ that the delay in the announcement is causing.
They added: ‘With regards to practice nurses, our GP committee has called on the Welsh Government to urgently address the crisis in general practice by securing a mandate to allow for GMS (general medical services) contract negotiations to start without any further delays.’
The Welsh Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Rebecca Evans, said: ‘The Chancellor has given a commitment to the public sector of a much-needed above-inflation pay rise. We will now carefully work through all the details which lie behind the statement and the implications for our budget.
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‘We know hard-working public sector workers are keen to find out how much they will be paid in 2024-25 but we need to understand the detail behind this announcement.’
