BANNER-WAVING protesters rallied in the streets to demand a pay rise for NHS staff following 18-months of devotion working on the frontline during the pandemic.

About 300 NHS workers and their supporters gathered in Basildon town centre to press the Government for a “restorative” salary increase - or risk losing people from the health service.

The protest came as the Queen awarded the NHS the George Cross - saying NHS staff had carried out their work “with courage, compassion and dedication” for more than 70 years.

The event, arranged by Nurses United, saw campaigners demand the pay rise they claim was denied last year by the Government during the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Government has suggested an increase of one per cent.

Thurrock Gazette: Protest - NHS campaigners. Pictures by Gaz De Vere Protest - NHS campaigners. Pictures by Gaz De Vere

However, it is understood nurses and hospital porters are due to get a new pay announcement “shortly” after plans for the one per cent rise provoked fury from staff.

The campaigners have refused to rule out strike action if the Government refuses to meet their demands.

Leah Sparks, 35, from Thurrock, a community heart failure specialist nurse and one of the event organisers, thanked the campaigners for attending.

She said: “There was many speakers in Basildon town centre including nurses who gave emotive speeches about working on the frontline in the Covid pandemic.

“This moved some people to tears and gave them something to take away with them.

“It’s now a case of building on this and thinking what our next event will be and keeping up the momentum and building on the network.

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“We will not rule out strike action and we may need to think about industrial action.”

The specialist nurse said there was also a lot of public support on the day with residents “telling the protesters NHS workers deserve more pay”.

She said: “Everyone was in good spirits and there were lots of different people from all sorts of groups.

“We also had a lot of support from different political parties too which was nice to see.

“I think there was just under 300 which was good to see but I think there were more supporters than NHS staff which was disappointing.

“It would have been good to see more NHS workers wanting to join the fight.

“I think it was successful we got a lot of contact details of the attendees and we will keep in touch with them.”

Ms Sparks said strike action is a last resort but NHS workers are burnt-out and patients are at risk.

In a speech, she said if the NHS does not see a fair restorative pay rise for all workers, the service is at risk of losing experienced, highly-skilled workers from the profession.

This will result in an increasing amount of unsafe staffing ratios, compromising patient care and safety, she added.

Ms Sparks also encouraged NHS workers to attend union branch meetings, start having conversations with colleagues, and get involved with the campaign for better pay for NHS workers.

She added: “This is such a crucial time and you need to be in the know with what is happening.”