UK faces new ambulance strike dates in February and March – Money Times

British Labor Union Unite Ambulance workers said they would go on strike on a series of new dates in February and March, the latest sign of a deepening dispute between the government and health workers over pay.

Ambulance workers in England will walk out on February 6, 17, 20 and 22 and March 6 and 20, while members in different regions will strike on different days, Unite said.

The new dates will raise fears for the safe operation of the health service UK On February 6, other health-related unions will also walk out, including the Royal College of Nursing.

The United Kingdom has been hit by a wave of strikes over the past six months, the largest in a generation, with railway workers, teachers and postal workers striking for higher pay in the face of rising inflation.

Unite said the government must negotiate current wages to end the strike.

“Continued attempts by the government to push the envelope and talk of one-off payments or future salary increases are not enough to resolve this dispute,” Unite’s top official Onay Kassab said in a statement on Friday.

Members of a separate union, the GMB, which represents ambulance staff and other health workers, have already planned strikes on February 6 and 20 and March 6 and 20.

Britain’s Department of Health and Social Care said in an emailed statement it was disappointed by news of further strikes, and said discussions with unions on wages for the 2023-2024 period were “constructive”.

“Ambulance staff do a fantastic job and it’s disappointing that some union members are going on strike again at a time when the NHS (health system) is already under huge pressure from dealing with Covid, flu and backlash,” he said. Spokesperson.