🔗 Share this article Resident Physicians in the UK to Stage Five Consecutive Day Strike Next Month Medical professionals in the UK are preparing to stage a five-day strike in November, in protest over pay and employment. Strike Details The BMA stated that resident doctors will strike for five consecutive days from November 14 at 7am to 7am on 19 November. Junior physicians, who make up nearly 50% of all medical staff in the National Health Service, are taking this action after failed negotiations with the government. Reasons Behind the Strike The chair of the BMA’s resident doctors committee commented, “This is not where we wanted to be. We have been negotiating for the past week with officials, pressing the health minister to end the crisis of doctors going unemployed.” “We know from our own survey half of second-year doctors in England are facing unemployment, their skills going to waste whilst millions of patients endure long waits for care and hospital shifts remain vacant. This is a situation which cannot go on.” He continued, “We negotiated sincerely, hoping the health secretary to see that a agreement including options to gradually reverse the cuts to pay over several years, giving recent graduates a pay increase of only £1 per hour for the coming four years.” “We hoped the government would see that our asks are not just fair but are in the best interests of the public and our patients and would also help prevent our doctors departing from the NHS.” About Resident Doctors Junior physicians have anywhere up to eight years’ experience practicing in hospitals, based on their field, or as many as three years in general practice. More details are expected shortly.