NURSES working for both Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust and Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust have voted to strike over pay.
The walkout will involve Royal College of Nursing members in more than half of hospitals and community teams, but emergency care will still be staffed.
Nurses in every service in Scotland and Northern Ireland voted for action. In Wales all but one health board did.
But in England the turnout was too low in nearly half of NHS trusts for strike action to take place.
RCN general secretary Pat Cullen said: “Anger has become action – our members are saying enough is enough.”
She said nurses had been getting a “raw deal” on pay for years.
“Ministers must look in the mirror and ask how long they will put nursing staff through this.”
The strike will be the first time UK-wide action is taken by RCN members in its 106-year history.
It comes after the government in England and Wales gave NHS staff an average of 4.75 per cent rise this year – with the lowest paid getting more.
The RCN, which represents about two-thirds of nurses in the NHS, has asked for five per cent above the RPI rate of inflation, which stands at more than 12 per cent
The government in England had urged nurses to consider the impact on patients.
It pointed out it had given a pay rise in line with what had been recommended by the independent NHS Pay Review body.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay said he ‘deeply regretted’ some union members had voted for action.
“Our priority is keeping patients safe during any strikes. The NHS has tried and tested plans in place to minimise disruption and ensure emergency services continue to operate.”
