Junior Physicians in the UK to Begin Five Consecutive Day Strike in November
Medical professionals in England are set to begin a five consecutive day strike next month, due to disputes regarding pay and employment.
Strike Details
The BMA announced that junior physicians will strike for five days in a row from 7am on 14 November to 7am on 19 November.
Resident doctors, who make up about half of all medical staff in the NHS, are proceeding with the strike after failed negotiations with the government.
Reasons Behind the Strike
Dr Jack Fletcher commented, “This is not where we wanted to be. We have been negotiating for the past week with officials, pressing the health secretary to resolve the crisis of doctors going unemployed.”
“Our survey reveals 50% of second-year physicians in England are facing unemployment, their talents being unused whilst millions of patients endure long waits for care and hospital shifts go unfilled. This is a situation which cannot go on.”
He added, “We negotiated sincerely, keen for the health secretary to see that a deal including options to gradually reverse the pay reductions over a number of years, providing newly trained doctors a raise of only £1 per hour for the coming four years.”
“We hoped the authorities would see that our demands are not just reasonable but are in the interest of the public and our patients and would also help stop our physicians departing from the NHS.”
About Resident Doctors
Resident doctors have as much as eight years of experience working as a hospital doctor, depending on their specialty, or up to three years in primary care.
More details are expected soon.
