Trainee doctors in England have announced a four-day strike starting April 11 as their pay dispute with the government continues.
The British Medical Association (BMA) said the ministers failed to “make a credible proposal in negotiations with tens of thousands of medical professionals” who launched further strikes.
Trainee doctors are campaigning for pay increases after saying their real wages have been cut by 26.1 percent since 2008, requiring a 35.3 percent pay increase. More than 250,000 visits and surgeries are expected to be cancelled.
Dr. Vivek Trivedi and Dr. Robert Lorenson, co-chair of the BMA Young Doctors Committee, said: “It is with disappointment and great disappointment that we have to announce this new union action.
“The government took every opportunity. She did not make a credible offer and refuses to admit that there is any justification for the return of wages, calling our key demand “unrealistic” and “unreasonable”. Also yesterday they kept adding new unacceptable terms to the negotiations instead of going ahead and trying to find a solution.
“Therefore, we are not sure that these negotiations can be successful without further action. This situation is entirely caused by the government itself. We want to spend our time caring for patients, not going on strike. But with the NHS collapsing in a staffing crisis and four out of ten young doctors wanting to leave, we can’t stand by and watch inflation and an uncompromising government drive our pay even further.
“We won’t stop until we pay what we’re worth, and if the ministers don’t accept it when we tell them in person, we have to tell them from the picket line.”
This story will be updated…
Source: I News
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