York: Junior doctors take to the picket line in BMA strike over pay

Last month, members of the British Medical Association (BMA) across England voted for the 72 hour strike, which started today (Monday, March 13).

The union said junior doctors’ pay has fallen in real terms by 26 per cent since 2008 and reversing this would require a 35.3 per cent pay rise.

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Junior doctors will be on the picket line outside York Hospital, Scarborough General Hospital and Harrogate District Hospital across all three days. 

Junior doctors on the Harrogate picket line. Drivers showing their support!

We'd love to see your pics of making history on picket lines too - please send to us on Twitter. pic.twitter.com/hj01fVp2Ls

— BMA Yorkshire (@YorksHumberBMA) March 13, 2023

Dr Robert Laurenson and Dr Vivek Trivedi, BMA junior doctors committee co-chairs, said: "These are people who can be providing life-saving care, having trained intensively at medical school, and racking up around £100,000 worth of debt in the process.

“Is it any surprise that junior doctors are looking for jobs abroad or in other fields when the Government is telling them they are worth more than a quarter less than they were in 2008?

“Losing such valuable clinicians to other countries and professions when waiting lists are at record highs means patients will suffer even more than they are already.

“This is why doctors are going on strike. We are fighting to restore our pay. We are fighting to restore our value. We are fighting to restore our workforce to make the NHS an effective healthcare system again.”

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York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has said it had worked with the union to mitigate the impact of the strike.

A trust spokesperson said: "During the junior doctors’ strike action, urgent and emergency treatment remains our priority. 

"Please be assured that patients can continue to access care from our emergency departments and maternity services, and critical services for our inpatients. 

"Unfortunately to ensure continuity of our emergency services, we have had to postpone a number of planned appointments doing this period. 

"We appreciate and understand this situation is frustrating for the patients affected and we apologise for any inconvenience caused. We will be re-arranging any postponed appointments as a priority.

"Regardless of any strike action taking place, it is important that people who need urgent medical care continue to come forward as normal.

"If people need medical advice but it’s not urgent, please contact NHS 111 who can provide advice and direct them to the best place for the care they need."

On Friday (March 10), the BMA rejected talks with Health Secretary Steve Barclay due to the “unacceptable preconditions”, which included looking at a non-consolidated lump sum payment for last year, whereas the BMA is seeking a “full pay restoration”.

Mr Barclay said: “We hugely value the work of junior doctors and it is deeply disappointing union members have voted for strike action.

“As part of a multi-year deal we agreed with the BMA, junior doctors’ pay has increased by a cumulative 8.2 per cent since 2019/20.

"We also introduced a higher pay band for the most experienced staff and increased rates for night shifts."