'It's a disgusting idea': Caller condemns nurse strike
6 November 2022, 18:55 | Updated: 6 November 2022, 19:10
This caller says nurses striking is 'disgusting'
This angry caller condemned NHS nurses who are set to hold the biggest strike ever in history before Christmas and called it a 'disgusting idea'.
The caller vehemently opposed the idea of nurses walking out on their jobs to advocate for an increase in salary and better working conditions.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) held a vote amongst its 300,000 membership to decide on whether or not they should vote.
RCN officials have stated that although counting is still underway, there are enough votes for industrial action to go ahead before Christmas.
This didn't sit well with the man who called in to Sangita's show and slammed the RCN's decision, despite the fact that his wife is a nurse.
Read more: Nurses set to strike before Christmas after voting in favour of first ever mass NHS walkout
'What I think is terrible about this, is it's going to have an impact on the very people that support them - the public,' he stated.
The caller touched on the fact that if the strike were to go through it would be 'punishing ordinary members of the public that are desperate, that need help and need nursing'.
He added: 'I think it's an absolutely disgusting idea!'
Sangita interjected and stated that nurses are 'struggling with bills', 'have to go to food banks because they can't feed their kids' and they are 'subject to pay freezes'.
Sangita dealt the caller a final blow to his unempathetic rhetoric and said: 'Nurses aren't just there to serve the general public, but they are also part of the general public.'
But, the caller didn't back down and retorted: 'I agree with their reasons, but I'm against striking for nurses. The NHS is already on its knees. Our society has enough problems.'
The caller ended his rant and said: 'I'm married to a nurse, but I don't buy into it. She has a different view, but I'm against nurses striking.'
This call sparked reactions on Twitter.
It's disgusting that they are put in a position that they feel the need to strike.
— LumpyKJ (@KJlump85) November 6, 2022
Why haven’t the government acted swiftly to resolve the issues when the nurses started talking about strike action?
— 1 (@mr_shi2) November 6, 2022
No public servant wants to strike. The hope is that the vote to strike will be heeded by this gvmt as a warning that they need to respect the professions & negotiate better terms. The strike only goes ahead if this gvmt continues to refuse an acceptable settlement. It is on them!
— Alison Wright (@AlisonWright14) November 6, 2022
