NHS staff strike threat

Car park charges raise concern
STRIKING is a last option for Royal Oldham Hospital staff stung with a 43 per cent hike in car parking charges, according to the Unite union.

Instead, said regional officer Gary Owen, the union has appealed for managers to get round the table and negotiate a fairer, lower charge.

“Staff are realistic and not opposed to a nominal increase, but they object to a 43 per cent rise in one go,” he said.

Staff at Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs hospitals in Oldham, Rochdale, Bury and North Manchester, saw charges hiked from £14 a month to £20 a month on May 1.

Those working fewer than 25 hours are now paying £15 instead of £10.46, with staff who work up to 15 hours a week paying £6.50 instead of £4.56.

Hospital bosses say it is the first rise in parking charges for four years, but Mr Owen said it was still way above inflation.

The union said it was against a background of a pay freeze, and maintains that NHS staff should not have to pay to work.

“Industrial action is an option, it’s something we can contemplate, but we don’t want to do it. It would be a last resort,” he said.

“There would be long process to go through first, and during that time, hopefully trust managers can get round the table and try to agree a more reasonable parking charge regime.”

A trust spokesman pointed out it had plans to increase the number of car parking spaces at the Royal Oldham later this year. He said people who used the car parks had to pay their costs or it would take money away from patient care.

He added: “The fact that salaries are frozen is a national decision affecting the whole of the public sector, not one made by this Trust.

He highlighted a “salary sacrifice scheme” for car parking with staff who opted for it paying less now than the previous monthly charge.