In a consultation of members, which closed on Thursday 9 January, nearly 73% of members who voted have accepted the pay offer from the Department of Health.
It is expected that the pay uplift will be applied to March salaries which will include 10 months of backdated pay. The Department of Health has committed to pay the remaining two months of pay as soon as possible.
Professor Rita Devlin, Executive Director of the RCN in Northern Ireland said: “I’d like to thank all of our members who took part in our recent consultation on pay. Once again, nursing staff in Northern Ireland have had to wait longer than anyone else in the UK to receive any kind of pay award which we believe is completely unacceptable.
“While we are relieved to have regained pay parity with our colleagues in England and Wales, we are determined to hold the Minister and Department of Health to their commitment to ensure a fair and timely pay award for 2025/26.
“Over the past number of weeks, we have seen nursing staff stretched to their limits in a system facing unprecedented pressure and strain. There is still much work to do to ensure that nursing is recognised and rewarded as it should be.”
