Health Trade Unions have received formal confirmation from the Health Minister that he has now approved payment of the full 12 months of the Agenda for Change pay award from 1st April 2024.
This follows commitments made by the Minister in December 2024 that pay parity for Agenda for Change would be maintained for 2024/25, with a 5.5% uplift on pay to be put in place. The Minister had initially only been able to provide funding for 10 months of this pay award, due to the constraints on the health budget. However, the Minister had committed to secure the funding required to pay the full 12 months to 1st April 2024.
Health trade unions acknowledge the efforts of the Minister in securing the funding required to implement the commitments made. However, it must also be recognised that sustained pressure from Agenda for Change unions played a critical role in ensuring this outcome. Unions have consistently pressed the Health Minister to guarantee full implementation of the pay award, ensuring that health workers received their full entitlement.
We have separately received assurances from the Department of Health that workers under Agenda for Change can expect to receive the 12 months as part of their March pay.
However, it remains our concern as Health Trade Unions that budgetary pressures have meant that it has taken much longer to reach this resolution than should be acceptable, with the end of the 2024/25 year approaching.
As we look into 2025/26 it is essential that dedicated funding is made available and that a decent pay award for 2025/26 is delivered much more swiftly for HSC workers providing a vital public service.