CLEANERS, porters, catering assistants, security guards and other health staff employed by private companies should receive the same pay rise as NHS staff, Unison said yesterday.

The union said private firms and subsidiary companies owned by individual NHS trusts should increase hourly pay to at least match new NHS rates.

The government sparked anger last month by announcing a delayed 3 per cent pay rise for NHS workers, which has led to warnings of industrial action.

But Unison says that staff working in the NHS and employed by private contractors are at risk of getting no pay increase.

The union has written to the largest private employers in the health service, saying that these workers “have worked hard and under incredibly challenging circumstances across the NHS throughout the pandemic.”

Unison general secretary Christina McAnea said: “Thousands of cleaners, porters and caterers have worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic alongside their NHS colleagues.

“NHS staff have the benefit of a national pay system, but those not directly employed are missing out, often because of complex contracting arrangements, penny-pinching practices and the hard-nosed pursuit of profit.

“Staff in the NHS work on one site as one team, from maintaining clean and safe wards to ensuring patients are fed and cared for. 

“No-one delivering NHS services should be paid less than their directly employed colleagues. A pay rise should apply to all NHS staff. Health workers employed by contractors must not be left behind.

“The public will expect everyone in the NHS to get the pay rise they’ve all more than earned.”