STRIKE action by porters at Southampton hospital has been suspended after the workers accepted proposals to end bullying and harassment, Unite announced today.

More than 60 porters voted to strike starting in late November, citing complaints of bullying from management, including the monitoring of toilet breaks, being forbidden from sitting during shifts and being denied water breaks while on duty.

Unite also raised concerns about financial bullying through the unfair allocation of shifts to private agency workers, while NHS porters had to survive on minimum wage, and said that porters advocating for a safer work environment were ignored.