UNISON today warned that the decision by North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust to cut sickness absence pay is a threat to patient safety.
The planned cut will affect nearly 5,500 members of staff who work unsocial hours, achieved by dismissing them and re-engaging them on contracts with worse terms and conditions. Nurses, midwives, health care assistants, and support staff including porters and catering staff are all affected.
The change will place enormous financial pressures on members of staff who are attacked or injured at work, have disabilities or long-term health conditions or even infectious diseases. However, those managerial and directorial staff who work standard Monday to Friday, nine-to-five jobs will be unaffected by the change.
The Trust is currently constructing a new hospital and it is clear the staff are having to pay the price.
Christina McAnea UNISON Head of Health said:
