Junior Physicians in England to Begin Five-Day Walkout in November
Medical professionals in the UK are set to begin a five consecutive day strike next month, due to disputes regarding jobs and pay.
Walkout Information
The BMA announced that resident doctors will walk out for five consecutive days from November 14 at 7am to November 19 at 7am.
Resident doctors, who make up nearly 50% of all medical staff in the National Health Service, are proceeding with the strike after failed negotiations with the government.
Causes of the Walkout
Dr Jack Fletcher commented, “This is not where we wanted to be. We have spent the last week in talks with officials, pressing the health minister to resolve the scandal of doctors going unemployed.”
“Our survey reveals 50% of second-year physicians in the UK are struggling to find jobs, their skills going to waste whilst millions of patients endure long waits for care and shifts in hospitals go unfilled. This cannot continue.”
He added, “We negotiated sincerely, keen for the minister to see that a deal offering solutions to gradually reverse the cuts to pay over a number of years, providing recent graduates a pay increase of just a pound an hour for the next four years.”
“We hoped the government would recognize that our demands are not just reasonable but are in the best interests of the public and our patients and would also help prevent our physicians departing from the health service.”
About Resident Doctors
Junior physicians have as much as eight years of experience working as a hospital doctor, based on their field, or as many as three years in general practice.
More details will follow shortly.
