Completed petition Give Nurses a pay rise in line with other frontline staff during COVID-19 pandemic
The Welsh Government has announced it would be awarding doctors and dentists a 2.8% pay rise, staying that the pay rise ‘reflects the commitment of the people who make sure our NHS is there for you’
Despite this, nursing staff, many of whom contracted the virus while working, were not included in the pay rise.
As a newly qualified mental health nurse, I am asking the Senedd to reconsider this decision and reflect the dedication of nursing staff by giving them the pay rise they deserve.
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Defence of nursing staff not being included in this pay rise is that we are receiving a 6.2% pay rise over 3 years, a pay rise that we would have received anyway and not in recognition of our hard work during these difficult times.
Two thirds of nurses who contracted Covid-19 are still experiencing the after effects of the virus while continuing to carry out their duty as a nurse (Nursing Times, 2020).
At the time of this petition, over 200 NHS staff, including nurses have died from coronavirus in the UK (The Guardian, 2020). This shows the ultimate sacrifice that nursing staff are willing to make to care for our patients, and yet they are not being given a pay rise along with their hard working colleagues.
In the last data analysis conducted by the UK Government in April 2020 of coronavirus infection rates, 16.2% of those infected were key workers who include nursing staff, accounting for nearly a fifth of confirmed cases (CEBM, 2020).
This petition was considered by the Petitions Committee
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