In a recent re-ballot, 98 percent of junior doctors in the UK have decided to continue their planned strikes in the pursuit of pay restoration, as confirmed by the British Medical Association (BMA) on Thursday. The decision of the junior doctors coincides with the planned action of UK consultants, leading to the first ever “joint strike” to be held on September 20. The information and details of the vote can be found on the BMA’s campaign website.
Out of the 44,079 votes cast by junior doctors, 43,340 were in favor of the continued strikes. The BMA sees the necessity of standing in solidarity with their consultant colleagues as crucial to ensuring the success of their action. They hope this united stand will provoke the UK government into making a credible offer, though specifics have yet to be revealed. Following the vote, strikes are scheduled from September 19 to 22 as well as October 2 through to 4, with a national rally planned for October 3 to coincide with the Conservative Party Conference.
The junior doctor committee co-chairs at the BMA, Dr. Rob Laurenson and Dr. Vivek Trivedi, have expressed their hope for this planned action, stating, “If we continue to stick together and strike together, we will win together.” Their statement can be read in full on the BMA’s Twitter page.
Steve Barclay, the UK Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has called the BMA’s announcement “extremely disappointing”. The UK government has proposed a 10.3 percent pay raise for doctors who finished their hospital training in 2023 and a 8.8 percent raise for average junior doctors. Despite the BMA’s continued resistance, Barclay insists that these figures are final.
Over the last 15 years, junior doctors have suffered a pay reduction of over a third. This autumn’s planned action is the sixth round of walkouts in 2023, the previous of which was announced in July. Groups argue that a 35 percent pay increase is necessary to offset the decline in pay experienced over the last fifteen years.