Junior Doctors in England Start Six-Day Strike

On Wednesday, some 75,000 resident doctors in England began a six-day strike to demand better salaries.

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Although doctors stopped their activities for 28 days in 2023, they voted to continue the protest after negotiations between the British Medical Association (BMA) and the UK government broke down.

In the summer of 2023, doctors rejected an offer of a salary increase of 8.8 percent as they requested a 26 percent increase to compensate for the loss of purchasing power since 2008.

"Over the last fifteen years, waiting lists have accumulated about 7.6 million people and are increasing," BMA spokesperson Robert Laurenson said, explaining that this is happening not due to the pandemic, but due to mismanagement.

"Year after year, the Government's response seems to be to cut doctors' salaries. We have lost 26 percent of salaries and we are only asking for their restoration," he stated, adding that doctors want salaries to gradually rise from £14 to £21 per hour.

Doctors residing in Wales also plan to carry out a 72-hour strike starting January 15, while doctors in Northern Ireland are also considering going on strike. Scotland's professionals reached an agreement with the Scottish government in 2023.

Last year's medical strikes led to the cancellation of more than 1.2 million appointments, costing the NHS around £2 billion.

Health Minister Victoria Atkins said junior doctors should "return to the negotiating table so that a fair and reasonable solution can be found to end the strikes once and for all".