Junior Physicians in England to Launch Five-Day Strike in November
Doctors in the UK are set to begin a five-day strike next month, due to disputes regarding jobs and pay.
Strike Details
The British Medical Association (BMA) announced that junior physicians will strike for five days in a row from November 14 at 7am to 7am on 19 November.
Junior physicians, who constitute about half of all doctors in the National Health Service, are proceeding with the strike after unsuccessful talks with the health department.
Reasons Behind the Strike
Dr Jack Fletcher stated, “We did not want to reach this point. We have been negotiating for the past week with officials, pressing the health minister to resolve the scandal of unemployed physicians.”
“We know from our own survey half of second-year doctors in the UK are facing unemployment, their talents being unused whilst millions of patients endure long waits for care and hospital shifts go unfilled. This cannot continue.”
He added, “We negotiated sincerely, keen for the minister to understand that a deal including options to gradually reverse the cuts to pay over several years, giving recent graduates a pay increase of only £1 per hour for the coming four years.”
“We hoped the authorities would see that our asks are not just fair but are in the interest of the public and our those we treat and would also help prevent our doctors departing from the health service.”
Who Are Resident Physicians?
Junior physicians have anywhere up to eight years’ experience working as a hospital doctor, depending on their specialty, or as many as three years in primary care.
Further information are expected shortly.