Junior doctors in England have started a three day protest over wages as they stage walkout
After walkouts by nurses, paramedics, and others who have been demanding hikes in wages, junior doctors in England staged a walkout on Monday, March 13, as per Reuters.
The strike is scheduled to continue for three days, starting from today, and will create a major disruption in the care of patients.
Emergency care will be prioritised by the NHS during the strike, which could delay appointments, surgeries and even some “urgent cancer treatment”, said Stephen Powis, NHS England National Medical Director.
Powis added, “It is going to be a hard three days and it’s going to be quite challenging.”
As per the British Medical Association trade union, junior doctors in the UK start with a pay of €14.09 per hour, which is “one pence less than top level of pay for a barista at British coffee chain Pret A Manger”.
“We’re just asking for that pay to be restored, and that looks like something like 19 pounds an hour”, said Robert Laurenson, co-chair of the BMA’s Junior Doctors Committee.
He added, they “had seen a real terms pay cut over the last 15 years due to public sector wage freeze”.
UK´s health minister Steve Barclay also recently invited BMA for talks and said, “We stand ready to have those discussions, and urge them to come and engage with us,”
“I don’t think a 35% pay demand is affordable”, he added.
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