Around 650 healthcare assistants at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust have won a campaign for rebanding and several years of back pay.
The band two healthcare support workers, who are members of trade union Unison, began their campaign because they stated they have seen their roles evolve and expand to take on more responsibilities without the pay and recognition to match. Many said they are performing clinical duties and patient observations, which fall under band three of the Agenda for Change pay scales.
The campaign was based on the premise that healthcare support workers deserve to be recognised for performing essential clinical duties to avoid the burden falling on other overworked employees, offered high quality training and career development opportunities to help build skills and progress within the NHS, paid at the right band and adequately compensated for the work they do.
Unison’s pay fair for patient care campaign has secured more than £200 million so far for some of the lowest-paid workers in the NHS.
Fiona Percival, Divisional Director of People at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, said: “We are really pleased to have uplifted all our band two healthcare support workers (HSCW) to band three this summer, with this change backdated to August 2021. This followed NHSE’s review of HCSW roles nationally which concluded that any roles that include delegated clinical duties, such as blood pressure monitoring, wound observations or simple dressings, should be assessed as band three roles.
“We introduced this change here after our own detailed review of HCSW roles across the Trust and discussions with our trade union partners, particularly Unison and the Royal College of Nursing. We are grateful to all our HCSW colleagues who helped with the review.”
Christina McAnea, general secretary at Unison, added: “Everyone must be congratulated for the part they played in the successful campaign. This fantastic win shows what can be achieved when we all work together. Unison is proud to be the trade union that represents healthcare support workers and we’re campaigning for the NHS to start getting it right.”
