NHS staff in Scotland will have to be consulted before a national pay deal for workers secures union backing, it has been warned.

Health Minister Malcolm Chisholm said that workers in Scotland, including nurses and paramedics, will receive an 11% pay rise over the next three years.

Health chiefs in Glasgow had hoped that a deal would help end unofficial strike action at five hospitals in the city.

Unison will be embarking on a wide-ranging information and consultation process before any agreement can be reached

Jim Devine Unison

But while the Scottish Executive welcomed the deal, the public service union Unison denied agreement had been reached.

The deal would mean salaries rising from �4.47 an hour to �5.18 an hour for a shorter working week.

The package entitled Agenda for Change has been thrashed out with representatives from 17 NHS professions.

Deputy Health Minister Mary Mulligan described the offer as the most radical in the NHS since 1948.

She said an increase in pay for staff was linked to modernisation of working practices.

'Hard negotiations'

The deal was "a big win for both staff and patients" which would help deliver a better service, she said.

The minister said: "I believe that after three-and-a-half years of hard negotiations between the unions and management we are now at the beginning of a settlement that will ensure a big improvement in the NHS."

However, Unison's head of health, Jim Devine, warned that the union could still pull out of the deal.

Mary Mulligan: "Hard negotiations"

He said: "These proposals are extremely complex and cover pay, conditions, unsocial hours, overtime and annual leave among many other factors, so clearly there is a lot for our members to digest.

"Unison will be embarking on a wide-ranging information and consultation process before any agreement can be reached.

"These discussions have been going on for nearly four years and the process of informing and formally consulting with our members will also be a lengthy one.

"We do not expect any agreement to be reached before the spring."

The GMB union, which represents non-medical staff, welcomed the deal but warned that other issues still had to be resolved.

'Significant victory'

"There are still a number of things which will have to be dealt with locally, like bonuses, pay differentials and claims in progress," said senior organiser Alex McLuckie.

"The pay hike to �5.18 signals a significant victory for GMB Scotland's Magic Fiver campaign to take every NHS workers above the �5 an hour mark."

Wildcat action by more than 300 administrators and clerical staff has hit five hospitals in Glasgow.

The strike follows a row over pay and conditions at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, the Royal Maternity Hospital, Stobhill, Canniesburn and the Dental Hospital.

We hope we will see staff back when they see they will benefit

North Glasgow University Hospitals NHS Trust

Unison branch secretary Carolyn Leckie accused the government of trying to divide public sector workers through the offer and isolate striking firefighters.

However, she said she believed strike action in Glasgow could stop on Friday when the Scottish concordat is considered by Unison.

She believed the concordat would be rejected, forcing employers to resume negotiations on regrading.

Unions are considering a Scottish concordat put forward by NHS employers last Friday, aimed at addressing low pay in the interim.

A spokesperson for North Glasgow University Hospitals NHS Trust said: "Obviously the national concordat was hoped to have a significant impact and encourage staff back.

"With Agenda for Change we hope we will see staff back when they see they will benefit."