Some parts of the health service will be offering the same service as they do on Christmas Day as nurses go on strike today.

The Royal College of Nursing is taking the action in support of a demand for a higher pay.

Members will stop working in many departments from 8am today until 8pm.

Manx Care has outlined its contingency plans, which are subject to change.

Read yesterday's story about them here.

The RCN said about 46% of the 550 union members working for Manx Care took part in the vote.

It said 80% of those who responded supported industrial action.

The ballot was launched after RCN members rejected Manx Care’s pay offer of a 2% consolidated pay increase in addition to the 4% pay award that was applied to their October salaries for 2022-23.

Manx Care had also offered an additional £300 one-off payment on top of the 4% pay award which had been paid for 2021-22.

The day before the RCN’s strike ballot was about to be launched, Manx Care put in a last-minute bid to try and prevent nurse strike action by increasing this one-off payment to £1,000.

Alongside its postal strike ballot, the RCN ran an online consultation of its members on the improved offer, however, 73% of its members rejected it.

After the ballot result, the RCN’s regional director for the North West of England, Estephanie Dunn, said: 'The results of these consultations has given us a strong message on how the membership on the Isle of Man want us to progress with their campaign for fair pay.'