Resident doctors (formerly known as junior doctors) in England have voted overwhelmingly in favour of a return to strike action, delivering a blow to the government just days after the launch of its ambitious 10-Year Health Plan.
The ballot, which ran from 27 May until 7 July, saw a turnout of 55%, with almost 30,000 (29,741) votes cast. Of these, 26,766 – or 90% – of those participating endorsing the use of strike action as part of efforts to restore pay, the British Medical Association (BMA) said. Leaders of the BMA’s resident doctors committee said that doctors had “spoken clearly” after the results.
NHS industrial relations
Streeting appeals to resident doctors to vote against strikes
The move comes despite doctors in England and Wales being awarded a 5.4% pay increase by the government, with doctors claiming this was not enough to account for historical pay freezes.
The BMA is calling instead for a salary increase of 29.2% to bring salaries back to what it terms “full pay restoration”, or to offset the level at which pay has declined in real terms since 2008, when adjusting for inflation.
BMA resident doctors committee co-chairs Melissa Ryan and Ross Nieuwoudt said: “Doctors have spoken and spoken clearly: they won’t accept that they are worth a fifth less than they were in 2008. Our pay may have declined but our will to fight remains strong.
“Doctors don’t take industrial action lightly – but they know it is preferable to watching their profession wither away. The next move is the government’s. Will it repeat the mistakes of its predecessor? Or will it do the right thing and negotiate a path to full pay restoration and the restoration of doctors’ confidence in our profession’s future?”
The vote is also a rejection of health secretary Wes Streeting who in May appealed to resident doctors to vote “no” in the strike ballot.
The vote potentially signals a return to the bruising industrial action that rocked the NHS between 2023 and 2024, when resident doctors in England participated in 11 rounds of strike action, after negotiations with the previous Conservative-government over restoring pay repeatedly stalled. This also led to an estimated 1.5 million appointments and procedures being cancelled.
The Department of Health and Social Care described the vote as “disappointing”.
“The secretary of state has been clear that he wants to work constructively with all unions, including the BMA, to improve working conditions for NHS staff and avoid strike action, which can be hugely disruptive for patients,” a spokesperson added.
Following last year’s general election, the BMA reached an agreement on pay with the newly elected Labour government, which resident doctors later voted to endorse.
This marked the end of formal dispute process but then, in April, resident doctors in England re-entered formal dispute with the government, blaming ministers’ failure to meet an agreement to publish the recommendations of the Review Body on Doctors’ and Dentists’ Remuneration (DDRB).
This dissatisfaction intensified following the publication of the DDRB on 22 May, with the report recommending a 4% pay increase, which the government then subsequently raised to 5.4%.
Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance
Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday
HR opportunities in Healthcare on Personnel Today
Browse more HR opportunities in healthcare
