In November 2024, all trade unions that form part of staff side at Manx Care consulted their members on the last and final offer of a 4% pay increase from the employer. A majority of RCN members that participated in our survey rejected the pay offer.

All trade unions met with the employer at the end of December 2024 to discuss the outcomes of their consultation.  All other trade unions have accepted the offer and as such the employer intends to implement the pay offer.

Following this decision the IOM branch, North West Regional Board and Trade Union Committee have given the employers decision and the result of the survey consideration.

They have decided the most appropriate course of action is to test member's appetite for strike action. Specifically, members will be asked if they would participate in strike action.

An indicative ballot is not a vote on whether or not to strike. Your vote will tell us whether you would be willing to take strike action.

An indicative ballot will not formally authorise industrial action but will be used to inform the next steps in the ongoing dispute.

The indicative ballot will be administered by the Royal College of Nursing. RCN members eligible to take part will receive an email with a link to the indicative ballot sent to the email address you have registered with the RCN.

To update your details log in to MyRCN or call RCN Direct on 0345 772 6100 (select option one), or email membership@rcn.org.uk. Please include your membership number in your email, and you will be asked for it if you call. 

The indicative ballot will be open from 12 noon on Wednesday 26 February 2025 to 12 noon on Wednesday 12 March 2025.

You can cast your vote on the RCN website. Only RCN members employed by Manx Care are eligible to take part in the indicative ballot.

If you’ve told us that you are employed by Manx Care you should have received an email with a link to the voting page where you can read more about the pay offer as well.

To update your details log in to MyRCN or call RCN Direct on 0345 772 6100 (select option one), or email membership@rcn.org.uk. Please include your membership number in your email, and you will be asked for it if you call. 

If you have issues accessing the voting website, please log in to MyRCN or call RCN Direct on 0345 772 6100 (select option one), or email membership@rcn.org.uk. Please include your membership number in your email, and you will be asked for it if you call. You can find out more about RCN membership and other ways to get in touch on our membership FAQs.

Your voting email will be sent from noon on Wednesday 26 February, and not before then.  If you haven’t received your email, please check your junk email in the first instance. 

If you still can’t find the email, check which email we have for you at: MyRCN or call RCN Direct on 0345 772 6100 (select option one), or email membership@rcn.org.uk 

The voting link will also be available on the Isle of Man branch page however, you will need your membership number to log in.

Only RCN members who are directly employed by Manx Care are eligible to participate in the ballot.

Although an employer may pay staff in line with Manx Care terms and conditions, if the employer is not part of the organisation (eg an independent employer) then the staff are not eligible to take part in this consultation.

This indicative ballot is only directly applied to staff who are employed by Manx Care. 

Only those who are eligible can vote. Votes will be checked against the employer you have registered on MyRCN, therefore it is imperative that your employer is correct on the RCN system to ensure it is counted.

Your employer will not know if or how you chose to vote in this ballot. Your vote is confidential, and the indicative ballot is conducted by the RCN.

The RCN will inform Manx Care of the outcome of this vote.

Yes, provided you are an RCN member and employed on a Manx Care contract, you are eligible to take part in the indicative ballot on this pay offer. For your vote to be counted your MyRCN record must be updated to include that you work at Manx Care.

To update your details, log in to MyRCN or call RCN Direct on 0345 772 6100 (select option one), or email membership@rcn.org.uk. You must include your membership number in your email, and you will be asked for it if you call. You can find out more about RCN membership and other ways to get in touch on our membership FAQs.

RCN student members who are directly employed by Manx Care are eligible to take part in this indicative ballot.

Only staff directly employed by Manx Care are eligible to take part in the indicative ballot.

To update your details, log in to MyRCN or call RCN Direct on 0345 772 6100 (select option one), or email membership@rcn.org.uk. Please include your membership number in your email, and you will be asked for it if you call.

It is important to include as much information about your workplace and employer as possible.

Students who are not directly employed by Manx Care can still support the Fair Pay for Nursing campaign, help spread the word about the indicative ballot and encourage colleagues to participate.

All staff currently employed by Manx Care and are eligible to participate in the indicative ballot. If you are no longer employed by Manx Care, then you will not be included in the ballot as you will not be affected.

If you have received an email encouraging you to vote in this indicative ballot it might be that your details in the RCN membership database are out of date. To update your details, log in to MyRCN or call RCN Direct on 0345 772 6100 (select option one), or email membership@rcn.org.uk. Please include your membership number in your email, and you will be asked for it if you call. 

Any information you share with us will be encrypted and stored securely and will only be visible to our staff for the purposes of handling your claim. Your claim will always be subject to the RCN’s Privacy Policy. 

You can change your vote as many times as you would like. However only your last vote will count. 

As soon as votes are verified, we will communicate the result via email to you. 

Manx Care offered a 4% pay uplift with effect from 1 April 2024 for staff employed at the time an agreement is reached. This was the third offer that was made for this pay period and previous offers were rejected by staff side. On receipt of this final offer all trade unions were asked to consult their members.  

The RCN conducted a consultative survey of members which concluded in November 2024. Over 50.15% of RCN members participated in the survey and 56.06% rejected the pay offer. A supplementary question asked, ‘If you selected reject, would you accept if back pay were included?’ and 42% of those who rejected the offer said they would have accepted if back pay were included.

After all trade Unions had consulted members a pay meeting was conducted with the employer on 20 December 2024. 6 of the 9 trade unions responded to accept the offer, 2 trade unions agreed to follow the majority and RCN members chose to reject the offer.

The employer has taken the view that as the majority of trade unions have accepted the offer, they will apply the pay award.  The opportunity to consult further is not available. The RCN branch are seeking guidance from the membership in this indicative ballot to determine if there is an appetite for strike action which may result in the opportunity to discuss the offer and backpay with the employer

A pay award is when an employer (such as Manx Care) or government (Department of Health and Social Care) that controls pay decides on the pay for staff and implements that decision by automatically applying it to the employee’s contract of employment. 

A pay offer is usually generated from discussions or negotiations between an employer or government that controls pay, and the employees or the employees’ trade union.

Once an offer is made, the employees are given an opportunity to consider if they wish to accept the offer made by the employer or government.

A pay award is when an employer or government that controls pay decides on pay for the staff and implements that decision by automatically applying it to the employee’s salary. In these circumstances, a recommendation would be redundant.

We reviewed the offer and did not make a recommendation as to whether members should have voted to accept or reject it. 

Manx Care has stated that they will not pay anyone back-pay who is no longer in their employment.

We challenged this position and will continue to do so.  It is the RCN’s position that staff who were employed in that time should receive a cost-of-living increase which they would reasonably expect to be afforded.  The RCN also recognises that any staff who have retired before the date of an agreement would suffer a financial loss.

The effect on an individual’s benefits depends on individual circumstances and the type of benefit. To find more detail on your benefit situation, go to www.gov.im/categories/benefits-and-financial-support

Members who are facing significant hardship and who need additional support and advice, can also seek support from the RCN Foundation.

The pay award is a gross (total) figure, and you need to take deductions into account when considering the pay award.

Pay is subject to tax, national insurance contributions and, if you are a member of the GUS pension scheme, pension contributions. You should check your current income tax, national insurance rates and pension contributions on your pay slip to assess how the pay offer will affect your take-home pay.

Further information is also available on the IoM government website.

Rises in pensionable pay can affect the contributions you will pay into the scheme. 

Some staff, as a consequence of their annual pay uplift and/or incremental pay progression, may end up paying a higher percentage of contributions. This is because their pensionable earnings have increased, and they move into a higher tier in the pension contribution framework.

This may make it seem like the value of the individuals pay uplift has been lost. Staff receiving pensionable allowances in addition to their basic pay (for example unsocial hours payments) may also be affected by this.

This pay award related to all health and social care staff directly employed by Manx Care on the Isle of Man on an Manx Pay Terms and Conditions (MPTC) contract.

Part-time workers employed by Manx Care were included in the pay award.  The 4% award was a consolidated award and will be applied across each pay band. The monetary amount would have been adjusted for those not employed full-time (ie pro-rata based on employed hours for part-time staff).

Bank staff working for Manx Care terms and conditions would have been affected by the pay award and therefore were eligible to participate in the consultative survey in November 2024.

The RCN expected this to be a fully-funded pay award from the Isle of Man Government.  

You can find out more about the campaign on the RCN website.