HEALTHCARE staff in the North East are being forced to work on Royal Wedding day for no extra pay.

April 29 has been declared a public bank holiday but County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust is not honouring the move and staff working that day are being given a standard rate of pay, rather than a typical bank holiday bonus payment.

The trust said employees would get a day off in lieu but under the national agreement for the NHS called Agenda for Change, staff working during a bank holiday are entitled to an enhancement in their pay ranging from double time to time plus 60%.

Union leaders last night branded the trust as a “Scrooge” for failing to get into the spirit of the Royal Wedding.

Trevor Johnson, Unison regional head of health, said: “NHS staff work hard and should be treated the same as other workers.

“It is unfair that they are being treated differently. Unison urges the trust to treat it as a bank holiday.” The Agenda for Change agreement stipulates that NHS staff get eight bank holidays. The Royal Wedding is an extra bank holiday announced by the Government, which British workers should be entitled to.

Rachael Maskell, Unite national officer for health, said: “NHS staff will be saving lives, looking after the sick and prepared for emergencies while most of Britain will be taking a well earned break or celebrating the Royal Wedding.