Unite union ambulance strikes planned for this week called off

Planned walkouts by Unite union ambulance workers this week have been cancelled with a day to spare.

Members at trusts in the West Midlands, North West, South Central, South Coastal, and East Midlands were to go on strike on Monday – with more planned for Wednesday in Yorkshire.

But following “further assurances from the government over the weekend”, the union says they will no longer happen.

“Unite has in good faith agreed to pause the strike action,” said Gail Cartmail, the union’s head of operations.

“If the meeting doesn’t meet these assurances, strike action will resume.”

Those assurances, the union said, include that any pay deal will include new money – rather than placing additional pressure on existing NHS budgets.

They were the last ambulance workers’ strikes still planned for this week, with the GMB and Unison unions having already suspended their own action.

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Those were called off after ministers at the Department for Health and Social Care said money was available for potential pay rises this year and next.

Significant disruption had been expected, as the strikes would have involved tens of thousands of key workers.

Had the Unite strikes taken place, it would have been the first time that members in South Central and South Coastal had taken industrial action.

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