Private hospital nurses in Kerala to begin indefinite strike from Monday over pay demand

The United Nurses Association (UNA), which represents nurses working in private hospitals in Kerala, has announced an indefinite strike beginning Monday, demanding that the basic monthly salary be raised to ₹40,000. The association said the protest would take place in hospitals that refuse to accept its demands.

Representatives of UNA held talks with members of the All India Health Care Providers Association (AIHCPA) on Sunday. After the meeting, UNA president Jasminsha said during a Facebook Live session that seven private hospitals had agreed to the salary demand and signed an agreement.

UNA said these hospitals would be exempted from the strike. Jasminsha added that AIHCPA represents a large number of hospitals across the state, and some institutions have decided to continue discussions to reach a settlement.

According to him, the agreement signed with the seven hospitals abolishes the practice of appointing trainee nurses and fixes the starting salary for nurses at ₹32,750. He said the agreement would lead to a gross salary increase of between ₹8,000 and ₹12,000 for nurses currently working in private hospitals in the state.

Jasminsha also said that most hospitals willing to continue discussions were small and medium-sized institutions, while several major hospitals remained reluctant to meet the association’s demands. Earlier, the state government had announced that the basic salary of nurses would be increased to ₹28,000, but UNA rejected the proposal.