Hospital laboratory workers strike again over pay

Strikes by hospital laboratory workers over pay and workloads are set to continue, the Unite union has said.

Microbiology staff at Airedale NHS Foundation Trust in Steeton, West Yorkshire, took strike action before Christmas and are on strike again this week from 9 until 11 February.

The union said the staff, who work for Integrated Pathology Solutions LLP (IPS) - a joint venture between hospital trusts - were on a lower pay band than they should be. The union said staff were now expected to do work for another trust, increasing nights and weekend call-outs.

The hospital said it was committed to resolving the dispute and was working hard to minimise disruption during strike action.

Unite said a further strike will take place on 18 until 20 February.

The union's general secretary Sharon Graham said: "Airedale trust's leadership are treating these staff disgracefully.

"They are already being paid too little, and now the trust is demanding they take on out-of-hours work on top of heavy existing workloads."

The union said strike action had resulted in testing delays for the hospital and local GP services.

Mark Harrison, director of operations for Integrated Pathology Solutions, said: "We value all our colleagues greatly. They are an integral part of our service supporting clinical teams, and the needs of our patients.

"We have listened to the views of our colleagues and have continued productive negotiations with Unite."

He said the organisation was not asking colleagues to take on extra out-of-hours work and "would also never change any rotas without consultation of colleagues or consideration of workloads".

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.