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Press release: Major 'job losses' in the NHS are misleading, says NHS Employers

11 May 2006

Reports of major NHS 'job losses' in the NHS are misleading and few people are being made redundant, according to NHS Employers.

Information gathered by NHS Employers from a survey of trust HR departments in the NHS show that even in trusts that have announced a reduction in posts, the number of actual redundancies will be relatively small. Job losses reported ranged between 60 and 1000 but, where organisations were able to give details, almost all said that only a handful of staff were likely to lose their jobs.

Where NHS organisations are reducing their workforce they are doing so by freezing vacancies, reducing temporary and agency staff, redesigning services and redeploying people in other settings.

The NHS Confederation and NHS Employers have sent a briefing to MPs on the issue ahead of Thursday's lobby and rally at Westminster.

'We feel it is important to set the record straight because of the likely damage to staff morale and public confidence of persistent inaccuracies and speculation,' said NHS Employers deputy director, Sian Thomas.

"Locally and nationally, employers are working very closely with staff and their representative organisations, consulting on any changes and ensuring as much as possible that  valuable staff skills are retained and patient care is not compromised."

Related publications

What is happening with the NHS workforce? (52 kB PDF)
Information gathered from NHS organisations indicates that very few people working in the NHS are losing their jobs despite the figures quoted in the media. |

Notes for editors

NHS Employers contacted organisations where job losses have been reported in recent weeks by telephone on May 8, following up a questionnaire sent to trust HR departments in England conducted at the end of March.

Contact details

The press office provides a comprehensive service to keep journalists informed about the work of NHS Employers.

If you have a media enquiry, please contact the press office team:

• Gemma Jeffcoate
  0207 074 3308 or gemma.jeffcoate@nhsemployers.org
• Emma Stafford
  0207 074 3307 or emma.stafford@nhsemployers.org

For out of hours media enquiries, please contact the duty press officer on 07880 500726.

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