Doctors union threatens to strike if government doesn’t agree on wage scale in January

The National Federation of Physicians (FNAM) warned this Thursday that it would go on strike if the health ministry did not demonstrate readiness for “real negotiations” on a wage scale for doctors next month.

“In January, the Ministry of Health must be available for real negotiations on the wage scale, otherwise FNAM will be forced to go on strike,” the trade union structure said in a statement.

Unions representing doctors and the health ministry met again on Thursday for a third round of talks, following meetings on November 9 and 28 with minister Manuel Pizarro’s team.

The next negotiating meeting has been set for January 9, FNAM said, given that it is “the deadline to send a clear signal that the Ministry of Health intends to value and glorify medical work by negotiating a wage scale.”

In addition to the salary issue, a primary health care working group has been set up to “resolve the issue of changing the size of user lists” of family physicians, the federation said in a statement.

“However, some progress has been made in agreeing on specific norms for the organization and discipline of medical work in order to improve the working conditions of doctors,” FNAM also put forward.

At Thursday’s meeting, the ministry proposed signing a new negotiation protocol that would include elements of the newly created NHS executive board, according to union structure.

These negotiations formally began with the team of Minister Manuel Pizarro, but the definition of the issues to be negotiated was also agreed with former Minister Marta Temido, who agreed to include the salary scale of doctors from the National Health Service in the minutes of negotiations.

Following the resignation of Marta Temido in late August, unions representing doctors asked the government to start negotiations, criticizing the MOH’s “complete silence” on the process.