NHS FAILS TO PAY ‘BEAST FROM EAST’ HEROES
Dozens of workers still waiting for payment three months later
HEALTH workers who took on 40-hour shifts as the ‘Beast from the East’ storm gripped the city are still waiting for overtime payments more than three months later.
Dozens of staff who battled to work despite the worst snowfall to hit Glasgow in a decade have not received cash as bosses have still not decided how it will be paid.
DOZENS of hard-working Glasgow health workers who battled through the snow to look after patients during the ‘Beast from the East’ storm have still not been paid for their extra hours – more than three months later.
The Evening Times has discovered staff working at the Rowanbank Clinic, in Balornock, are still waiting for their payment for working extra hours during the March storm which swept the nation.
Almost the entire country was brought to a standstill during the ‘Beast from the East’ which saw temperatures plummet and the Met Office issue Scotland’s first red weather warning in decades.
With the transport system affected and roads covered in snow, some dedicated staff even worked shifts of up to 40 hours at the mental health facility to cover for workmates who could not make it in.
The Evening Times has learned at least 30 members of staff were told the health board had not decided how they were going to pay the staff for the extra work.
A source said: “Hundreds of staff stayed on to keep the hospitals running during the adverse weather.
“Transport was even arranged to get staff who could not get i nto the hospital.
“Many staff however could not get transport at the end of their shift to get home, so they had to stay on and do the long shifts.”
The source added: “The staff in the clinic thought everyone in Glasgow hospitals had not be paid as that is what they were told.
“The staff were told there was a delay because the health board had not decided if they were paying the shift as overtime or as a bank staff payment.”
The Evening Times understands Unison was contacted by several members of staff at the clinic, but the trade union said it would not comment on the matter.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board has issued an apology to the staff, and said they will receive the money by the end of the week.
A spokeswoman for the health board said: “The vast majority of our staff have been paid promptly and correctly for all hours worked during the adverse weather in March.
“Unfortunately we have identified a small number of staff who work at the Rowanbank Clinic who have not received full payment for this period.
“This is being remedied as a priority to ensure staff receive what they are owed by the end of the week.
“We would like to apologise to the staff affected, and we remain grateful for the commitment and dedication shown by our staff during that testing time.”