The unions urged the Government to honour the pledge it made to fix the wage structure when imposing a 3.3% AfC pay rise in April this year following a pay review body (PRB) recommendation.

UNISON head of health and chair of the NHS unions, Helga Pile, said: ‘NHS workers have been promised time and again the Government will fix structural pay issues at the heart of Agenda for Change contracts. But this is unfinished business and they're still waiting.'

The unions said resident doctors pay had risen at double the rate of AfC staff over the past four years, leading to widespread dissatisfaction.

All but one of the 14 unions have vowed to boycott the PRB saying the process is outdated and unable to deal with the modernisation the pay system needs to remain effective.

In Scotland, the Government has ditched the pay review body and negotiates directly with unions.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: ‘This Government recognises the vital work of NHS staff. Without them, we would not be seeing the fantastic progress the health service is making to improve care for patients right across the country.  

‘That progress matters, because better outcomes for patients are only possible with a supported and motivated workforce.

‘We are committed to working closely and constructively with unions, NHS employers and staff to tackle these challenges and have provided the NHS Staff Council with a funded mandate to negotiate improvements to the Agenda for Change pay structure.'