‘Scrap the pay cap,’ demand nurses ahead of an RCN rally at parliament in London

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Nurses and their supporters were set to hold a #ScraptheCap protest in London’s Parliament Square this Wednesday.

It’s part of the Royal College of Nursing’s (RCN) “summer of protest” against the 1 percent public sector pay cap.

Since the Tories took office in 2010, nurses have suffered a 14 percent pay cut in real terms.

But the Tories are under pressure. Theresa May’s government has been thrown into chaos over the pay cap for the second time this summer.

It was forced to signal that it would look at lifting it later this month.

Unions need to press home the advantage.

Even if the cap was lifted, that wouldn’t make up what nurses have lost.

In a consultation in May, 74 percent of nurses backed taking industrial action. The RCN should ballot its members and call them out.

Other unions, including the largest public sector union Unison, should campaign and ballot their members for pay strikes.

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