NURSES from the Alexandra Hospital joined thousands of their colleagues throughout the country for two days of strike action.
The group braved the cold weather to make their voices heard outside the Redditch hospital with many saying they would never have ‘dreamed of themselves striking’.
It is part of the national Royal College of Nurses’ (RCN) action in a bid for pay to be increased in line with inflation for current healthcare staff and to entice more into the profession.
Zerina Thomas has been a nurse for over 35 years and this was the first time she had undertaken strike action.
She said: “People may think ‘why bother striking when you’ve been in the job this long?’.
“But what about the conditions for newly-qualified nurses or when I get older and need to use the service?
“What will be left of the NHS in 20 years time?
“If we want people to continue to work as an NHS nurse, or attract people into the profession there has to be major changes.”
Redditch nurses joined over 100,000 others across England, Northern Ireland and Wales.
The union said its nurses had received under-inflation pay rises for many years and many did not want to stay in the profession because wages did not match the roles they were undertaking.
