Junior Doctors in the UK to Begin Five-Day Strike Next Month
Medical professionals in the UK are set to stage a five consecutive day strike next month, due to disputes regarding jobs and pay.
Strike Details
The BMA announced that junior physicians will walk out for five consecutive days from November 14 at 7am to 7am on 19 November.
Resident doctors, who constitute nearly 50% of all medical staff in the NHS, are proceeding with the strike after unsuccessful talks with the health department.
Reasons Behind the Strike
The chair of the BMA’s resident doctors committee commented, “This is not where we wanted to be. We have been negotiating for the past week with officials, pressing the health minister to end the crisis of unemployed physicians.”
“Our survey reveals 50% of second-year physicians in England are facing unemployment, their skills going to waste whilst countless individuals endure long waits for care and hospital shifts remain vacant. This cannot continue.”
He continued, “We negotiated sincerely, keen for the minister to understand that a deal offering solutions to gradually reverse the pay reductions over a number of years, providing newly trained doctors a pay increase of only £1 per hour for the next four years.”
“We hoped the authorities would see that our demands are not just reasonable but are in the interest of the community and our those we treat and would also help stop our physicians leaving the NHS.”
Who Are Resident Physicians?
Resident doctors have anywhere up to eight years’ experience working as a hospital doctor, depending on their specialty, or up to three years in primary care.
Further information are expected soon.
