Seven in ten of the lowest paid NHS workers were forced to pay to park their cars, figures show
The NHS racked up £70 million in costs from staff last year as seven in 10 of its lowest-paid workers were forced to pay to park their cars.
New figures from NHS Digital Show Trusts pocketed £70,510,110 in 2023/2024 by charging doctors, nurses and porters to park their cars.
NHS staff in the North West paid the most, almost £15 million, followed by the North East and Yorkshire with more than £14.5 million, and then the Midlands with more than £11 million.
The trust that got into the most trouble was University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire, which collected more than £3.2 million in parking charges, followed by Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust with just over £3 million.
A separate survey of almost 2,000 GMB members found that 72 percent of those working in hospitals had to pay to park at work.
GMB’s NHS pay claim filed earlier this year calls for parking charges to be scrapped for NHS staff.
NHS staff benefited from free parking during the pandemic, but some trusts have since reintroduced charges.
Rachel Harrison, national secretary of the GMB, said: “NHS workers have had their first above-inflation pay rise after almost fifteen years of austerity.
New figures from the NHS Digital Show Trusts pocketed £70,510,110 in 2023/2024 by making doctors, nurses and porters pay to park their cars
A survey of almost 2,000 GMB members found that 72 percent of those working in hospitals had to pay to park
‘They have had to contend with enormous workloads, chronic understaffing and the consequences of a global pandemic.
‘Health workers are on their knees; they need help and support. Charging them to park is like kicking them while they’re down.”
GMB is calling on the Government and NHS employers to do the right thing and scrap staff parking charges.”
The Daily Mail has previously revealed that trusts also made £173.1m last year by charging parking charges on patients, with critics accusing the NHS of ‘taxing the sick’.
The Conservatives’ 2019 manifesto pledged to ‘end unfair hospital parking charges by making parking free for those who need it most, including disabled people, frequent outpatients, overnight parents of sick children and night shift staff ‘.
Under current Department of Health and Social Care guidance, parking charges must be ‘reasonable for the area’.
Trusts must provide free parking for disabled people, frequent outpatient visitors, parents of sick children staying overnight and staff working night shifts.
NHS England said parking charges are a way for trusts to manage capacity in their car parks for patients and staff.
The income is used to pay the car park’s operating costs such as security and maintenance, with any excess income reinvested into NHS services.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: ‘Costs for hospital car parks are the responsibility of individual NHS trusts, but all costs must be reasonable and in keeping with the local area.
‘Free parking is available for all NHS staff working overnight.’