In its submission to the NHS pay review body the Department of Health is calling for flat rate seven day working and the scrapping of incremental progression as pre-conditions for the 1% pay rise sanctioned by the Con Dem Government. The employer proposals mark a further attack on the Agenda for Change national agreement despite union concessions made as recently as April 2013 on the removal of enhancements from sick pay and tighter criteria for incremental progression. The integrity of the NHS pay review body as an independent system of pay determination has been a strongly contested issue in UNISON and the next pay award will be a major test of its credibility as an alternative to collective bargaining:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/245628/evidence_to_nhsprb.pdf
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/oct/04/jeremy-hunt-nhs-pay-rise-cancelled
