Resident Doctors in the UK to Begin Five Consecutive Day Strike in November
Medical professionals in England are preparing to stage a five consecutive day walkout in November, due to disputes regarding jobs and pay.
Walkout Information
The British Medical Association (BMA) stated that junior physicians will walk out for five consecutive days from November 14 at 7am to 7am on 19 November.
Junior physicians, who constitute nearly 50% of all medical staff in the National Health Service, are proceeding with the strike after failed negotiations with the government.
Reasons Behind the Strike
The chair of the BMA’s resident doctors committee stated, “We did not want to reach this point. We have spent the last week in talks with officials, pressing the health minister to end the scandal of doctors going unemployed.”
“We know from our own survey half of second-year doctors in England are facing unemployment, their skills going to waste whilst countless individuals 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 minister to understand that a deal offering solutions to gradually reverse the cuts to pay over several years, giving newly trained doctors a pay increase of only £1 per hour for the coming four years.”
“We trusted the government would recognize 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 physicians departing from the health service.”
Who Are Resident Physicians?
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.
Further information will follow shortly.
