The late NHS pay award in England could see overseas nursing support workers ineligible for visa renewals, according to the RCN.
Changes to visa rules announced by the Home Office will increase the minimum salary threshold for a Skilled Worker visa from £23,200 to £25,000, below the current entry-level salary for a band 3 NHS worker, including nursing support workers.
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The RCN has written to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper warning that unless the next pay award brings band 3s back above this threshold, it risks making entry-level NHS band 3 workers permanently ineligible. This could have significant ramifications for the nursing workforce.
In the letter, RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive Professor Nicola Ranger said: ‘A delayed pay award will mean that entry-level band 3 staff will become ineligible for visa renewals until a revised pay scale is in place.
‘If action is not taken by the Home Office and Department of Health and Social Care to address this gap, it will have devastating consequences for those affected.’
The changes are due to take place on 9 April, and the RCN is not expecting this year’s NHS Agenda for Change pay award to be implemented prior to that date, which risks leaving entry-level band 3 staff – who are already working in the UK and whose visas are currently up for renewal – ineligible. It is important to note this won’t affect existing visas, only new applications and renewals.
According to the RCN, without intervention, those who are unable to renew their current visas will have 60 days to seek alternative employment that takes them above the £25,000 threshold, under the current sponsorship system from the Home Office.
The implications would also extend to settings such as social care, with the pay for many care roles falling short of the new £25,000-a-year threshold. While the UK government has committed to a Fair Pay Agreement for staff in social care, implementing the new threshold rise prior to any agreement risks leaving care workers without a way to renew their sponsorship and at risk of exploitation by their employer.
‘This announcement will also impact migrant care workers working in social care teams, many of these staff will be paid below the new salary threshold of £25,000,’ added Professor Ranger.
‘The RCN recognises the need to address the pay of staff in the care sector and continues to engage in discussions to further this aim.’