Agreement reached on HPSS pay reform

Ground-breaking reforms to working practices in the Health Service will bring better, fairer pay for up to nearly 60,000 HPSS employees including nurses, therapists, porters and support staff.

This is according to negotiators representing the UK Health Departments, Health Service employers and 17 Health Service staff side organisations who successfully concluded talks which will give a 10% basic pay increase over three years for all staff.

When the costs of the reform package are added in over the next three years, it will be worth an average increase of 12.5% in basic pay. After four years of negotiation, it also heralds the most radical transformation of the Health Service pay system since the foundation of the service in 1948.

Instead of automatically progressing up the pay scale over time, staff who take on extra responsibilities and acquire new skills will in future receive extra rewards. There will also be incentives to change traditional ways of working in order to improve patient care as well as greater flexibility for employers to pay more locally to recruit and retain staff.

The outcome aims to improve overall productivity, boost capacity and expand services across the HPSS.

Commenting on the deal, the Minister with responsibility for Health, Social Services and Public Safety, Des Browne said the deal would bring the most radical modernisation of the Health Service pay system since its foundation in 1948. He added: "In essence it is about paying more to get more, so that staff who take on new responsibilities get extra rewards. It represents a good deal for Health Service staff and also for patients."

The proposed deal now goes out for consultation with the various staff side organisations. If approved, implementation within HPSS is likely to start in October 2004.

(MB)