Union calls on NHS employers to sign care pledge

UNISON is asking NHS employers in England to sign up with their local trade unions to the Talent for Care local partnership pledge.

Staff such as porters, healthcare assistants, receptionists, administrators and cleaners form the backbone of the NHS. They make up around 40% of the NHS workforce and are responsible for 60% of all direct patient contact.

Yet less than 5% of the training budget is spent on them.

Produced by Health Education England, the Talent for Care strategy for England aims to change this; an ambition supported by UNISON

The Talent for Care strategy provides a framework and leadership for NHS employers to invest more in staff who have been undervalued and overlooked for too long.

The union welcomes the clear recognition that real change can only be delivered when employers work in partnership with their local trade unions.

To improve patient care, employers need to get the best out of their whole workforce and that will require concerted action at every level across the NHS.

UNISON will be briefing its union learning reps on how to use the strategy, and asking employers in England to sign the local partnership pledge with their local unions.

Local partnership pledge

Read more about Talent for Care