'From the frontline to the breadline' - Protestors at Walsall Manor Hospital say re-introduction of parking charges will 'hit them hard'
Staff from Walsall Manor Hospital took to the streets to protest against parking charges for staff which are due to be re-introduced on Saturday.
From November 1 staff at the Manor, and New Cross Hospital, Wolverhampton will have to pay £30 a month if they work more than 22.6 hours and £18 of the work less than 22.6 hours. The charges, affecting 14,000 staff on the two sites will not even guarantee them their own parking space protestors said.
It is the first time since 2016 that staff will have had to pay for parking at the two sites - charges were previously £20 and £15 per month but were suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic - government funding to keep parking free ended in 2022.
The protest saw around 40 staff and supporters chant and attempt to add names to a petition of 30 pages which they intend to present to bosses of The Royal Wolverhampton and Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust which runs both sites.
Pat Usher, staff site lead for Walsall Healthcare and a Unison representative, said people had been coming into the office saying they would be unable to pay the charges.
She said; "We have had very little notice of this re-introduction of the charges, I think it has taken a lot of people by surprise and there was no negotiation either with the staff or union.
"Nor has there been a chance for anyone representing the staff to meet the chief executive and discuss the issue, which is an emotive one and which will see workers across the board whatever their salaries now facing another cost issue.
"It also means the highest paid staff will be paying the same as that of the lower paid such as porters or cleaners despite the disparity in salaries.
"We have a 30 page petition gathered from across the Manor and New Cross Hospitals and we would welcome the opportunity to present it to the chief executive as it illustrates the strength of feeling there is on this issue."
Some of the staff said the charges would effectively 'wipe out' their yearly pay rise and the charges would not even guarantee a space.
Chanel Camilleri-Willis, the regional head of house at Unison West Midlands which represents 5,000 workers at the two sites said: This has been brought in so quickly people haven't had chance to come up with a response, meeting or protest until now and this has been hastily arranged.
"We hear at length how the staff of the NHS are the fibre to a national treasure but they won't even come to the table and talk about why they are doing this, how much money they expect to raise and what the alternatives are because there are always alternatives."
Joe Chadwick-Bell, chief executive of The Royal Wolverhampton and Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust, said it had been an "extremely difficult decision".
She said parking spaces would be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis, with staff encouraged to use public transport or car share to reduce demand.
She added: "The trust has avoided reintroducing charges for as long as possible, however the financial challenge we are facing means that we can no longer support free parking," Mrs Chadwick-Bell added.
"We are sorry to have to do so from November, but we must ensure our funds are spent on patient care as a priority."
Comment Guidelines
Iconic Media encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.