Junior Physicians in the UK to Begin Five-Day Strike in November
Doctors in the UK are preparing to stage a five consecutive day walkout next month, due to disputes regarding pay and employment.
Strike Details
The British Medical Association (BMA) announced that junior physicians will strike for five consecutive days from November 14 at 7am to November 19 at 7am.
Junior physicians, who constitute about half of all doctors in the National Health Service, are taking this action after unsuccessful talks with the health department.
Causes of the Walkout
Dr Jack Fletcher stated, “This is not where we wanted to be. We have spent the last week in talks with government, pressing the health minister to end the scandal of unemployed physicians.”
“We know from our own survey 50% of second-year physicians in the UK are facing unemployment, their skills going to waste whilst countless individuals endure long waits for care and shifts in hospitals remain vacant. This is a situation which cannot go on.”
He added, “We talked with the government in good faith, hoping the minister to understand that a deal including options to slowly restore the cuts to pay over several years, giving newly trained doctors a raise of just a pound an hour for the next four years.”
“We hoped the authorities would recognize that our asks are not just reasonable but are in the best interests of the public and our patients and would also help prevent our doctors leaving the health service.”
About Resident Doctors
Resident doctors have as much as eight years of experience working as a hospital doctor, based on their field, or up to three years in primary care.
More details are expected shortly.
