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Junior Doctors in England Vote for Six More Months of Strikes

By Nithya Bose in Business News, posted March 21, 2024

Junior doctors in England have voted to extend their strike for another six months amid a pay dispute, with 98 percent in favour.

The British Medical Association (BMA) has called on the Health Secretary to propose a new offer.

A total of 33,869 junior doctors supported further action, representing a 62 percent turnout.

This extends their mandate for strikes and other forms of protest until September 19, as they seek to reverse years of pay cuts.

Dr. Robert Laurenson and Dr. Vivek Trivedi, co-chairs of the BMA’s Junior Doctors Committee, said: “It has now been a year since we began strike action.

“That is a year of strikes too many.

“The Government believed it could ignore, delay, and offer excuses long enough that we would simply give up.

“That attitude has now led to the NHS wasting £3 billion covering the strikes.

“This is more than double the cost of settling our whole claim, and as we see in the results of today’s ballot, delaying tactics will not work.

“Doctors are still determined to see their pay cuts reversed, and they are willing to keep striking another six months to achieve that.

“The Government should see the urgency of the situation. Rather than waste time dragging out talks, they can come forward with a credible offer on pay right now.”

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Saffron Cordery, the deputy chief executive of NHS Providers, said: “Today’s announcement marks another worrying escalation in this lengthy dispute between the Government and junior doctors.

“The resounding backing for six more months of strike action as well as action short of strikes – which is just as hard to plan for and manage – will inevitably lead to more disruption to patient care.

Over the past year, junior doctors have conducted multiple walkouts, driven by the BMA's campaign to restore their pay after years of below-inflation rises.

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