Hundreds of hospital workers are set to go on strike in a dispute with a trust over claims it is refusing to give them a payment for working during the pandemic.

Some 300 members of the Unite union contracted to 2gether Support Solutions, a subsidiary firm owned by East Kent Hospitals University Foundation Trust (EKHUFT), say they have not received any cash.

NHS staff were given a lump sum of at least £1,655 which was signed off at a meeting between the government and health unions earlier this year.

The payment was to recognise the pressure of the Covid pandemic on staff.

But outsourced staff did not qualify for the one-off payment.

Unite says 2gether – which operates at five hospitals across east Kent – has confirmed it will not pay the sum to staff who cover estates, facilities, domestics, housekeepers and catering departments.

Some of these staff are among the lowest paid in the NHS earning £11.45 per hour.

EKHUFT is one of the largest hospital trusts in England and runs the Kent and Canterbury Hospital, William Harvey Hospital in Ashford, the QEQM Hospital in Margate, Buckland Hospital in Dover and the Royal Victoria Hospital in Folkestone.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham says the NHS trust is “behaving disgracefully”.

“It has outsourced workers to a company it entirely controls, is paying them some of the lowest rates within the NHS outside Agenda For Change terms and is now refusing to fund the lump sum payment.

“Its actions would shame even the most penny-pinching private sector employer.

“Unite always prioritises the jobs, pay and conditions of workers and our members in the NHS in East Kent will receive the union’s steadfast support.”

Workers will be taking strike action on December 11, 15, and 18 but further industrial action will be considered if the matter is not resolved.

Unite is calling on the government to “fund the lump sum payment properly and immediately” so all NHS workers, regardless of their contractual status, can receive the payment.

The lump sum payment is worth between £1,665 and £3,789 per worker.

The trust is struggling to get to grips with spiralling costs and during an update in November revealed it is £60m over budget.

It runs to a planned deficit and was meant to be at £72m by April 2024.

EKHUFT has been contacted for comment.