UK Hospitals Crippled as Senior Doctors Strike for 48 Hours

In the midst of an ongoing salary dispute between doctors and the British government, prominent doctors in England are expected to go on another 48-hour strike on Thursday.

In addition to the National Health Service's warning that patients should expect significant disruption during the two-day strike, thousands of hospital doctors have announced that they will only offer emergency care, as reported by The Associated Press.

Doctors Seeking Better Pay

As part of a wave of disruptive industrial action by public sector workers to seek better pay in the midst of the cost-of-living crisis in the UK, physicians, nurses, and other clinical personnel conducted their most recent strike on Thursday.

The most recent walkouts, according to Julian Hartley, CEO of NHS Providers, are a "massive headache" for the public health system because they coincide with the three-day public holiday weekend in late August when demand for hospital emergency rooms is normally higher. This effectively means that many services will not be available for five days.

Since announcing that senior doctors will receive a 6 percent salary increase, the Conservative administration has declared that negotiations over pay are done.

According to Health Secretary Steve Barclay, prominent doctors make an average of 134,000 pounds per year, in addition to a handsome pension.

The physicians' organization, the British Medical Association, denounced the raise as "insulting" and claimed that during the previous 14 years, doctors' real compensation has decreased by 35 percent. Many medical professionals claim that they feel forced to take action in order to bring attention to their subpar working circumstances.

The British Medical Association announced that members would strike once more on September 19-20 and October 2-4.

Tens of thousands of young doctors, or medical professionals just starting out in their careers, are still in a pay dispute with the government. The government reached separate agreements with the nurses' unions and other health professionals, like as paramedics and ambulance drivers, earlier this year.

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An Ongoing Issue

A 2022 report by the British Medical Association (BMA) found that the average junior doctor in the UK earns just £14.09 ($17.82) per hour, less than a barista at coffee shop chain Pret-a-manger. The report also found that junior doctors have had a 26 percent real terms pay cut since 2008.

BRITAIN-HEALTH-DOCTORS-STRIKE — People hold placards calling for better pay for junior doctors on a picket line outside University College Hospital in central London on August 14, 2023, during a strike by junior doctors -- physicians who are not senior specialists but who may still years of experience. Hospital doctors in England will be striking until Tuesday morning in a dispute with the government over pay in the latest strike action to hit the UK's state-funded National Health Service. by HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP) (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images

(Photo: by HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP) (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images) People hold placards calling for better pay for junior doctors on a picket line outside University College Hospital in central London on August 14, 2023, during a strike by junior doctors -- physicians who are not senior specialists but who may still years of experience. Hospital doctors in England will be striking until Tuesday morning in a dispute with the government over pay in the latest strike action to hit the UK's state-funded National Health Service.

A 2023 survey by the Health Foundation found that 50 percent of doctors in the UK are dissatisfied with their pay. The survey also found that 40 percent of doctors are considering leaving the NHS due to pay concerns.

The underpayment of doctors is having a number of negative consequences for the NHS. It is leading to staff shortages, increased stress levels among doctors, and a decline in patient care.