Around 90% of NHS staff have already received two doses of the vaccine.
MPs have voted to support mandatory vaccinations for NHS staff in England.
The motion to impose mandatory vaccines on NHS staff was passed by 385 votes to 100 during a session in the House of Commons earlier this week alongside “Plan B”.
The news means that from April 2022 all NHS workers with “direct contact with patients” will need to have received at least two of the Covid-19 vaccine.
The new rules will apply to all those working in NHS and private hospitals, GP surgeries, community services, or any other health or social care organisation regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
Official figures suggest that around 90% of NHS staff had already received two doses of the vaccine, with only around 94,000 opting out to date.
Those still declining the vaccine in Apil, without a medical exemption, could face forced redeployment to non-patient-facing roles or even redundancy as a last resort.
Strong-arm tactics.
Unions are worried the current tactic will only worsen the chronic staffing shortage the NHS currently faces.
There are currently around 40,000 unfilled nursing vacancies across the NHS in England alone, rising to 100,000 across all healthcare professions.
Responding to the news, Rehana Azam, GMB National Secretary, said: “Our union has encouraged take up of the vaccine and booster jabs, but the Government needs to look beyond strong-arm tactics.
“While they’re asking front line workers to go above and beyond once again, they are still not paying these workers properly.
“Against the backdrop of covid, there is a cost-of-living crisis, key services face an understaffing crisis, and the people delivering them are enduring a wage crisis.
“That’s not good enough and it’s got to be confronted.
“All political parties supporting these measures should understand our key workers must be paid properly – it’s the least they deserve for everything they are doing for all of us.”
