NHS workers have called on the Health Secretary to take action to prevent a third year of pension contribution increases.

Members of Unison, which represents health staff, are angry about the increases to their contributions introduced by the Scottish Government for 2012/13 and 2013/2014.

They want Alex Neil to help prevent a third year of rises in contributions in 2014/15 and pay for this with efficiency savings instead.

The union's plea came the day before Mr Neil is due to make a keynote speech at Unison Scotland's health conference in Glasgow and about two weeks before he will address delegates at the union's UK-wide conference, also to be held in the city.

Willie Duffy, the union's lead organiser for health, said workers wanted to know why they should be pay more when they have effectively had pay cuts for the last couple of years.

Tom Waterson, chairman of Unison Scotland's health committee, said other key issues to be raised at the conferences will be concerns about health and social care integration and a call to scrap the NHS Pay Review Body.

Mr Neil said: "The UK Government has put us in the position where funding for frontline services would suffer if we do not follow their rules on pension payments."