By Nick TriggleHealth correspondent
Junior doctors in England are to stage more strikes in December and January after rejecting a new pay offer from the government.
The British Medical Association said the deal, worth an extra 3% on average this year, was "not credible".
It came after five weeks of talks between the BMA and government - and after junior doctors had already received an average pay rise of 8.8%.
The BMA wanted 35% more to make up for below-inflation rises since 2008.
The walkouts will be for three days from 07:00 on 20 December and six days from 07:00 on 3 January.
The first week of the year is always one of the busiest for the NHS with emergency services often under huge strain.
In a statement, BMA junior doctors committee co-chairs Dr Robert Laurenson and Dr Vivek Trivedi, said: "We have been clear from the outset of these talks that we needed to move at pace and if we did not have a credible offer, we would be forced to call strikes.
"After five weeks of intense talks, the government was unable to present a credible offer on pay by the deadline.
"Instead, we were offered an additional 3%, unevenly spread across doctors' grades, which would still amount to pay cuts for many doctors this year."
Health Secretary Victoria Atkins said it was "disappointing" that junior doctor leaders had walked away from negotiations.
"The new strikes will result in more disruption for patients and extra pressure on NHS services and staff as we enter a busy winter period, risking patient safety," she added.
Since industrial action started in the NHS more than one million appointments and treatments have had to be cancelled - this includes walkouts by nurses, ambulance workers and physios as well but the ones by doctors have been the most disruptive.
The pay rise which was given to junior doctors from April was weighted so those at the start of training - and therefore on the least money - got the biggest rises.
The announcement by the BMA comes after the union reached a deal last week with the government on consultants, who have also been taking strike action.
The deal will now be put to consultants to vote on - it involves an average pay increase of nearly 5% in January on top of the 6% rise they got in April.
Other health workers accepted a pay offer of 5% more and a one-off sum of at least £1,655 in May.
"stage" - Google News
December 05, 2023 at 08:12PM
https://ift.tt/ZJHn2b0
Junior doctors to stage more strikes in England - BBC.com
"stage" - Google News
https://ift.tt/Aqw5iXP
https://ift.tt/kIJ3AnS
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Junior doctors to stage more strikes in England - BBC.com"
Post a Comment