The Society has given a mixed reception to the government’s three-year pay deal which offers a below inflation increase in the first year.

There is frustration that the 2008/09 offer of 2.75 per cent does not come close to the latest retail prices index figure of 4.1% (February) but the organisation grudgingly acknowledges that it is better than the 2 per cent cap the Treasury was hoping to impose.

“Staff are still smarting from last year’s insulting staged increase which actually meant that millions of people saw a cut in their pay, “ says Warren Town, the organisation's director of industrial relations.

“The proposed 9 per cent over three years (2008-11) may sound okay on the face of it but we want undertakings that the package will be flexible to keep in step with inflation, especially if there is a surge in prices in years two and three.“

As usual, the devil will be in the detail. We are waiting for the full report from the Pay Review Body. We are pleased that they have ignored intense pressure from the government to impose the equivalent of a hefty pay cut. Radiographers are fed-up with being treated as the underdogs by a government who plays on the staff’s goodwill and dedication to patients.”

The annual delegates' conference meeting in Leeds (14-15 April) will shape the Society’s response to government.

Posted: 07/04/2008