Article: Health unions accept `national' pay deal

BARRIE CLEMENT

Labour Editor

The threat of industrial action by 600,000 nurses and other health workers was averted last night after union leaders accepted a deal which involves the controversial introduction of a national minimum wage.

After a day of talks, employees' representatives agreed a settlement in which local deals with NHS trusts will be under-pinned by a mechanism to protect the lowest paid. Union leaders will argue the deal concedes the principle of a national minimum wage when the Government is attacking Labour for espousing such a policy.

Under the peace formula there would be a two-year bargaining sequence. In the first year the 500 trusts would negotiate their own pay ...

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