Huge protest planned over "deeply concerning" plans to cut hundreds of jobs at QA Hospital
A huge protest is set to take place tomorrow against proposed cuts to staff at Queen Alexandra Hospital which has seen 549 jobs put at risk.
Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust (PHU) has put the jobs at risk as it looks to meet the financial targets set by the Department of Health and Social Care. While the jobs at risk are not set to be clinical roles, concerns have been raised that it will still impact clinical staff who may have to take on the additional work.
A protest has been arranged to take place outside QA hospital between 1.30pm and 2.30pm on Thursday, April 17 with ‘deep concern’ expressed at the level of the cuts and the impact on the hospital and the trust’s services.
Jon Woods, chair of Portsmouth Trade Union Council, which has arranged the protest, said: “The loss of 549 jobs in one of the city's largest employers is of deep concern to Portsmouth Trade Union Council. When admin, HR and other support jobs are cut, the work doesn't simply go away.
“There is a real risk that clinical staff will have to take on additional work. NHS staff are already under immense pressure. The last thing they need is job losses and additional work for those that remain.
“The Labour government is operating a slash and burn policy when it comes to public services. These are political choices, and we expect better from a party in government that was founded by the trade union movement."
As well as the potential job losses at PHU, there could be a further 249 job losses at the Isle of Wight NHS Trust.
A spokesperson for Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust and Isle of Wight NHS Trust, said: “As providers, we have a responsibility to live within our means and deliver the required performance and quality standards for our patients.
“Across both IWT and PHU, we have already delivered significant improvements across finance and performance in 24/25 through robust management of our temporary workforce and some transformational change including the creation of a single corporate service supporting activity across the Group.
“In 25/26 we face similar challenges in terms of financial savings, so need to go further in our approach to deliver the scale of improvement expected of us. This includes further tightening our controls on temporary workforce and recruitment activity, as well as well as seeking further opportunities to transform how we deliver within each organisation and at scale across our Group and the Hampshire and Isle of Wight system.
“Across Hampshire and Isle of Wight, we have all agreed common processes around vacancies, recruitment, and use of temporary workforce to help us achieve the significant financial savings required of us.
“We understand these decisions may be difficult, but they are necessary in helping ensure our organisations are able to continue meeting the changing needs of our patients in a more resilient and flexible way.”