The NHS faces an 'exodus' of staff if a better pay deal is not offered, Labour warned today.
Fresh data showed the number of nurses and health visitors leaving the profession last year was up by 50% since 2010/11.
And the figures showed a 182% increase in nurses and health visitors quitting over work-life balance.
Some 3,013 nurses and health visitors quit in 2019/20 - the largest number in a decade.
Labour warned that without a pay rise after the pandemic, there could be an even larger exodus of staff in the future.
Shadow Health Minister Justin Madders said: "These figures should be ringing alarm bells loud and clear that Ministers need to change course and start listening to and valuing the NHS workforce.
“Years of pay freezes, record vacancies and relentless pressure are having their effect with hard pressed staff voting with their feet.”
Figures also showed an increase of nearly 60% in nurses and health visitors quitting because they could get a better reward package elsewhere.
Some 448 gave this reason for leaving in that year.
Mr Madders added: “The last year has seen NHS workers perform heroically but for many the offer of a real terms pay cut will be the last straw so Government need to urgently reconsider their approach otherwise the exodus we have seen in recent years will become a flood.”
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “We recognise the enormous pressure this global pandemic has put on our heroic NHS health workers which is why NHS workers will receive a pay rise while the rest of the public sector are paused.
“Over one million NHS staff have benefited from a multi-year pay deals agreed with trade unions, which have delivered a pay rise of over 12% for newly qualified nurses and will increase junior doctors’ pay scales by 8.2%.
“We have a record number of doctors, nurses and NHS staff working in the NHS in England and the government continues to make sure the health service has the funding it needs to recover, investing £63 billion over the last year and an additional £29 billion next year to help address patient backlogs and tackle long waiting lists.”
