A councillor has strongly criticised plans to transfer hundreds of NHS bank staff across Bath and North East Somerset and Wiltshire to the private company Pulse, describing the move as “not acceptable.”
The Royal United Hospital (RUH) in Bath, along with Salisbury NHS Trust and Swindon’s Great Western Hospital NHS Trust, collectively known as the BSW Hospitals Group, intend to outsource these bank staff roles starting August 1. Robin Moss, leader of the Labour opposition on Bath and North East Somerset Council, said that Labour councillors have written to Health Secretary Wes Streeting to express their concerns.
Moss stated: “It is unacceptable to degrade the pay and working conditions of part-time staff, many of whom are women. There has been a lack of clarity on how this decision was made, who was consulted, and whether it was legitimate given these concerns.”
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While basic pay is expected to remain unchanged, conditions of employment would differ as bank staff would lose their TUPE (transfer under protected employment) rights upon moving to Pulse. These bank staff fill flexible shifts to cover absences or surges in NHS demand and make up a crucial workforce.
Significantly, about 40% of bank staff without full-time NHS contracts risk losing substantial retirement benefits. Their employer pension contribution would drop from the current NHS rate of 23.7% to just 6% under Pulse. This could cost those staff thousands in pension savings.
Moss questioned the impact on patient care, saying: “How can demoralising staff improve healthcare? Why is part-privatisation viewed as beneficial, and why weren’t people properly informed about what was always going to be a complicated decision?”
The BSW Hospitals Group maintains it followed legal processes and did not need to consult local authorities. However, they conceded that communication could have been better after the plan was revealed at a recent Bath and North East Somerset Council health scrutiny meeting by trade union representative Baz Harding-Clark and former RUH governor Nicola James.
The NHS Integrated Care Board, responsible for commissioning healthcare across the area, was only informed by RUH on the morning of that meeting. Dine Romero, chair of the health scrutiny committee, has demanded more information from the trusts and plans to raise the issue with Health Secretary Wes Streeting.
BSW Hospitals Group a spokesperson said: “We engaged with staff-side unions and workers in line with statutory consultation obligations. Multiple opportunities were provided for feedback during the outsourcing process. We acknowledge communication with the local authority scrutiny panel could have been more effective. We remain committed to supporting all affected staff and encourage bank workers to apply for substantive NHS roles as they arise to secure their employment.”