Frequently Asked Questions on the pay offer for Four Seasons Health Care/brighterkind for 2023-24

The main points of the proposed offer are as follows: 

• All those on the national minimum wage will receive the planned increase from £9.50 to £10.42 which is equal to 9.7% and affects 43% of the workforce
• Between 5 – 5.9% for all other staff
• A one-off, non-consolidated payment of £200 (for staff with an annual salary up to £52,000)
• Sick pay from day 1 of any absence, paid at statutory sick pay rate.
• An additional day of leave for the King’s Coronation
• An additional day of leave for staff with 2 years’ service, which affects 21.5% of current staff
• A further additional day of annual leave for 5 years’ service, which affects 32% of current staff
• Four Seasons Health Care has also offered some non-pay additional benefits such as a hot meal being provided on every shift, and membership of the Blue Light discount scheme

The consultation runs from midday on Thursday 30 March until midday on Thursday 27 April.

The consultation is run by the RCN, is an online-only consultation and can be found on the RCN website here.

Only RCN members employed by Four Seasons Health Care or brighterkind  are eligible to take part in the consultation on this pay offer.

Eligible RCN members have been sent an email from RCN with a link to the voting page, but you can also go directly to the voting page from this link: rcn.org.uk/fourseasonsballot.

Once logged in, you will be taken to the voting page which includes information about the pay offer.

RCN members who do not have a valid email address on their member record will be sent a letter with details of how to access the consultation.

Votes must be cast before midday on Thursday 27 April, when the consultation closes. You will not be able to vote after this time. 

The RCN recognises that this offer does not meet the pay claim submitted by the RCN and other recognised trade unions.

The pay claim was submitted to Four Seasons Health Care December 2022 – summarised as follows:

• A pay increase in line with inflation.
• An improved occupational sick pay scheme, with payment from day 1 of any absence.
• An additional day of annual leave.
• Paid breaks.
• A non consolidated cost of living payment of £250 for all staff. 

However, the offer does include pay increases of at least 5% along with some other improvements.

The RCN believes that all nurses and nursing support workers, wherever they work, deserve to receive pay, terms and conditions at least as favourable as those received by members working in the NHS.

The RCN is therefore not making a recommendation as to whether members should vote to accept or reject this offer.

It is for RCN members employed by Four Seasons Health Care or brighterkind to have the final say on this offer.

This pay offer relates to staff directly employed by Four Seasons Health Care or brighterkind. Every RCN member employed by Four Seasons Health Care or brighterkind can participate in the RCN consultation.

Agency workers not employed directly by the organisation are not eligible to participate in this consultation.

Yes, part-time workers will receive the same percentage increases to their current wages as their full-time colleagues. Any increase in annual leave as a result of this offer will also be on a pro-rata basis.

The RCN is committed to giving members the final say on any pay offer. The 2023/24 offer from Four Seasons Health Care is a direct response to a joint trade union pay claim, based on our members’ priorities for pay. The consultation runs from midday on Thursday 30 March until midday on Thursday 27 April.

Your elected representatives on the RCN Trade Union Committee will make the formal response of the pay offer to Four Seasons Health Care.

If RCN members vote to reject the pay offer, we will seek further negotiations with Four Seasons Health Care. Any revised offer would be subject to a further consultation - members will always have the final say on their pay

The purpose of this consultation is to find out if members accept or reject the pay offer from Four Seasons Health Care. It is not a ballot on industrial action.

If RCN members vote to reject the pay offer, we will seek further negotiations with Four Seasons Health Care. Any revised offer would be subject to a further consultation.

Should we be unsuccessful in securing a better offer, or if members reject all further offers, we will ask members working for Four Seasons Health Care how they would like to proceed.

Industrial action is always a last resort, and can only be called through a statutory industrial action ballot where strict turnout and voting thresholds must be met.

No. Your employer will not know if or how you voted in this consultation. It is run by the RCN and is confidential. The RCN will know how many eligible members have voted in the consultation, how many have voted to accept the pay offer and how many have voted to reject the offer. The RCN Trade Union Committee will make the formal response of the pay offer known to Four Seasons Health Care.

Yes. If you are an RCN member and are employed on a Four Seasons Health Care or brighterkind contract, you are eligible to take part in this consultation.

Please check that the details we hold for you are correct. Login to MyRCN, call RCN Direct on 0345 772 6100 (select option one), or email membership@rcn.org.uk. You must include your membership number in your email, and you will be asked for it if you call. You can find out more about RCN membership and other ways to get in touch on our membership FAQs

RCN student members who are directly employed on Four Seasons Health Care or brighterkind contracts are eligible to take part in this consultation.

RCN Student members who are currently employed on Four Seasons Health Care or brighterkind contracts must have this information recorded on their RCN record in order to be eligible to vote. Please fill in your name, employer and workplace details on this form or phone RCN Direct on 0345 772 6100. It is important to include as much information about your workplace and employer as possible.

No. Only staff currently employed by Four Seasons Health Care or brighterkind in Scotland, England and the Channel Islands are eligible to vote in this consultation.

If you have not received an email or a letter it might be that the details we hold for you are not up to date. Please check your details: login to MyRCN, call RCN Direct on 0345 772 6100 (select option one), or email membership@rcn.org.uk. You must include your membership number in your email, and you will be asked for it if you call.

The affect on an individual’s benefits depends on their individual circumstances and the type of benefit. Members who are on means-tested benefits, such as universal credit, should consider the implications of the Four Seasons Health Care pay offer before voting to reject or accept it.

To check your benefit situation, call the Citizens Advice Helpline on 0800 144 8848 (England), 0800 028 1456 (Scotland), or 0800 735 0249 (Jersey)Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm. Calls are free.

The pay offer is a gross (total) figure, and you need to take deductions into account when considering the pay offer.

Pay is subject to tax, national insurance contributions and, if you are a member of a pension scheme, pension contributions. You should check your current income tax, national insurance rates and pension contributions on your pay slip to assess how the pay offer will affect your take-home pay.

Rises in pensionable pay are also subject to increases in pension deductions. Find out more about pension contributions here.

Members of pension schemes pay a proportion of their wages into their pension, as does their employer. The pension that members receive is determined by how much is paid into this pension and how it is invested by the pension provider. For most members in any pension schemes, receiving a higher wage may to lead to a larger pension, but exactly what the impact of this pay offer will be will depend on individual members’ circumstances.

The RCN cannot give members individual advice on the impact of this pay offer on their pension. Members who wish to know more about their pension should consult their pension provider in the first instance and then take up financial advice if necessary.