Resident Doctors Vote for Additional Strike Action
Resident doctors in England have voted in favour of further strike action amid their ongoing dispute with the government concerning pay and the availability of training posts.
Members of the British Medical Association (BMA) supported additional walkouts, granting the union a new six-month mandate to conduct strike action, although no specific dates have yet been announced.
The dispute began in spring 2023 and has resulted in 14 separate strikes to date.
This development follows a month of negotiations between the union and the government after the most recent strike, which took place just before Christmas.
Approximately 93% of BMA members voted to continue the dispute, with a turnout rate of 53%.
Statements from BMA Leadership
BMA resident doctor leader Dr Jack Fletcher commented on the vote, stating:
"Ministers cannot be shocked that doctors have voted to strike after being recommended a pay cut this year by the same health secretary who promised a journey to fair pay."
"And without thousands more training posts, the bottlenecks in medical training are going to continue to rob brilliant young doctors of their careers. Doctors have today clearly said that is not acceptable."
Dr Fletcher emphasized that strikes are not inevitable and noted an improved tone from the government in recent weeks.
"A deal is there to be done: a new jobs package and an offer raising pay fairly over several years can be worked out through good will on both sides, in the interests of patients, staff and the whole NHS," he said.
Pay and Training Post Concerns
Resident doctors have received pay increases totaling nearly 30% over the past three years; however, the BMA argues that when adjusted for inflation, their pay remains about 20% lower than it was in 2008.
The union has also highlighted a shortage of available jobs at a critical stage of medical training.Resident doctors, formerly known as junior doctors, transition into specialty training posts after their second year. This year, there were over 30,000 applicants competing for 10,000 positions at this stage, though some applicants were international doctors.
