NURSES’ pay is £8,000 lower than if wages had kept up with inflation since 2010, according to new research.

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) said its analysis showed that nurses’ pay has been “severely eroded” over the past years, especially for junior staff.

The report was published as tens of thousands of nursing staff vote in the RCN’s consultation on this year’s pay award and just days after resident doctors announced they will be taking strike action later this month.

The RCN said addressing “collapsing” wages for those at the start of their careers must be a priority for the government, especially if it wants to boost recruitment into the profession and deliver its 10-Year Health Plan.

RCN England executive director Patricia Marquis said that nursing staff are tired of playing constant financial catch-up, often struggling to pay rent or get on the housing ladder.

She said: “Nursing is an incredible profession, but we are weighted to the bottom of the NHS pay scales and received one of the lowest awards this year, a situation which is deepening the workforce crisis and impacting patient care. 

“Attracting and keeping talented people should be the government’s priority, but that requires them to do better on nursing pay.

“Our members are voting in their tens of thousands and making their voices heard on this pay award.

“Ministers must realise that the only sensible choice left to them to negotiate directly with the largest healthcare workforce.”

Ms Marquis called it time to deliver both better pay and pay modernisation for nursing staff.

A government spokesperson said: “This government inherited a broken NHS with an overworked, undervalued and demoralised workforce. 

“We hugely value the work of talented nurses, and through our Plan for Change, we are rebuilding the NHS for the benefit of patients and staff, ensuring nursing remains an attractive career choice.

“We have awarded nurses two above-inflation pay rises since entering office as we recognise their pay has been hit over previous years.”

They added that the government is “delivering a real-terms pay rise for the second year in a row, meaning a nurse will earn over £30,000 as a new starter for the first time.”