HOSPITAL workers paid the minimum wage by private contractors across England have missed out on a £2,000 pay rise that they would have received if they were directly employed by the NHS.

Around 100,000 low-paid cleaners, porters, security guards and catering staff are being treated as “second-class employees,” according to union Unison.

Last year, as part of a three-year deal negotiated by unions, the lowest-paid workers in the NHS were given a £2,000 pay rise.

But the overwhelming majority of health staff employed on private contracts have not received anything extra, Unison says.

The union has called on the government to end the pay divide, which it claims is pushing outsourced staff to leave in search of better-paid jobs.

The union wants everyone employed within the NHS to be on at least £9.03 an hour.

Unison said that many staff employed by private contractors are on the minimum wage of £8.21.

An equivalent annual salary of £16,052 is £1,600 a year less than what the lowest-paid worker in the public sector is paid.

“All hospital workers are part of the NHS team and should be paid fairly for the important jobs they do,” said Sara Gorton, Unison’s head of health.

“The days of treating them as second-class employees must end.”

Health minister Stephen Hammond insists the government does not get involved in contracting arrangements between commissioners and non-NHS providers.