conditions and pay at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.

But the hospital says the latest pay offer was made as a separate gesture of recognition from the board and will not be upped before scheduled pay talks start in June.

Bermuda Public Services Association (BPSA) General Secretary Ed Ball Jr. last night denied a 21-day strike notice already had been issued.

And he refused to be drawn on whether nurses would vote for industrial action.

He said: "I am not in any way going to preempt the vote. Until a vote is taken I don't have a mandate. I don't know what will come from the floor.'' A pay row broke out after the union claimed it thought a pay hike of two grades would all go through in April rather than one stage this year and the other stage in 12 months' time.

An increased offer from the Bermuda Hospitals Board (BHB) to add a further grade hike in 2003 was rejected on Friday.

Yesterday nurses expressed anger at the board for not listening to their concerns and for scheduling a meeting and then not showing up.

A delegation of nurses turned up to a press conference but left after half an hour chanting "the nurses, united, will never be defeated,'' when board bosses failed to show up on time.

One nurse said: "Some other countries address working conditions, here we buy and launder our own uniforms.

"Bedpans are broken, we don't always have the equipment to do our job to the best efficiency.

"We discussed bedpan washing -- for six months I haven't seen a bedpan washer on our ward and other staff tell me that situation has been going on for years.

"Bedpans are washed eventually but there's no system so patients get fresh bedpans regularly.

"Beds are faulty, there are drip stands with wheels missing. The accumulation of lots of small things, right from the top to the bottom, means poorer working conditions.'' Another member of the nursing staff said: "At no time do we jeopardise patient care.

"There was a time when there was no water at the hospital and we made every effort to make sure everyone was cared for.

"We went to the limit, as far as heating water up in the microwave to make sure people had a bit of warm water to attend to their hygiene.

"We had to get water from maintenance so nurses could flush toilets.'' One British nurse said: "The main issue is the lack of respect. They don't have any respect for us.'' Golinda Fox, second vice-president of the Hospital's BPSA branch said the board had offered to meet with various sections of staff throughout the week but then cancelled before the second meeting was due to start.

"We wanted to meet as a body, not in separate sections but when we went there was no one there.'' "We wanted to come to this press conference but no one has showed up.'' "We understand that the nurses' pay scale was never discussed in Cabinet, Nelson Bascome has let us down by saying to us that he would give us a gift -- a Christmas present.

"The nice Christmas present they wanted to give is far less than what they were offering us before December, that's the main issue.

Ms Fox continued: "We don't mind the other health workers getting a raise, but we also deserve decent pay.'' There is also anger that junior nurses who may have degrees and diplomas are being paid less than some support staff.

However, the board says only emergency medical technicians are paid similar wages to the lowest-paid nurses.

One ex-pat nurse said junior people were going up two grades while those in their posts for five years were only going up one grade.

"It's an unfair wage jump. They are trying to encourage new nurses to come to Bermuda but it's totally unfair to experienced staff, who have given loyalty and been here a long time.

"They are meant to be pro-Bermudian but this is against them as well.'' However, Chief Executive Officer Stephanie Reid denied this was the case.

She said: "All nurses get a one-step rise this year and a one-step rise next year.'' Hospital Board Chairman Ianthia Wade said: "The board is working very hard to show we appreciate the nurses.

"We started this (pay) initiative to show the benefit they give for the country and also for retention and recruitment of staff.'' She said salaries offered by BHB were extremely competitive with other countries, but it was unfair to expect the hospital to compete with private hospitals in the US who could charge large amounts for rooms while the BHB was constricted by Government on the fees it could charge.

Asked about a possible strike, she said: "We would consider that unfortunate but I would hope this press conference clarifies some of the issues.'' Ms Reid said the board was listening to concerns about shoddy equipment.

She said: "There are signs of a lack of maintenance of the facility that has gone on for years.

"At this point in time we're working hard to get some new equipment, including bedpan washers as well as address the salary upgrade.'' She also said new surgical nurses were being brought on board to address shortages while new scholarships and training would help address shortages in the intensive care unit.

Refurbishment of nurses' accommodation was also promised by Ms. Reid.

She said: "Nurses' homes have not been managed effectively for the past 20 years.''