Health Minister announces 3% pay rise for Welsh NHS staff

Health Minister Eluned Morgan has agreed a 3% pay rise for all NHS staff, as she today accepted the recommendations of the pay review bodies in full.

The recommendations from the NHS Pay Review Body and the Doctors and Dentist Review Body apply to staff on Agenda for Change terms and conditions, which includes employed nurses, cleaners, porters and health support workers. It also applies to consultants, doctors in training, pre-2021 speciality and associate specialist (SAS) doctor contracts, salaried GPs and dentists.

The pay rise will apply retrospectively from April 2021.

Health Minister Eluned Morgan said:

“Once again, I want to thank our Welsh NHS staff for their extraordinary efforts over the course of this pandemic. Many staff have worked extremely long hours under enormous pressure.

This pay rise recognises the dedication and commitment of hardworking NHS staff and the enormous contribution they have made. It is also a recognition of how valued they are by Welsh communities.

For our lowest paid staff, this means we have gone above the Living Wage recommendation of £9.50 an hour, demonstrating our commitment to NHS Wales being a Living Wage employer.”

The UK Treasury has not yet provided any information about whether any additional funding will be provided to cover the cost of the recommended uplift above the 1% cap previously announced but the Health Minister said current budgets will be prioritised to enable this the deal to be implemented.

The pay increase will be made in addition to the NHS and social care bonus payment which was announced by the previous Minister for Health and Social Services in March 2021. The one off payment of £735 acknowledged the compassionate care provided by our NHS workforce to the people of Wales when we have been at our most vulnerable.