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full screen Doctors on strike in London in May this year. Now they have an agreement. Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP/TT
After 18 months of strikes and strike threats, British doctors have agreed to the government’s latest bid and will return to work in full force.
The doctors are getting a 22.3 percent pay rise over two years, far short of the 35 percent they requested but still enough for two-thirds of the 45,830 members to vote yes.
– It should never have gone this far, but we have shown what we can achieve with sheer determination and a government that is willing to discuss a realistic way forward, says the union’s chairman couple Robert Laurenson and Vivek Trevedi.
For the new Labor government, the agreement is a success. Health Minister Wes Streeting said a deal was a top priority when he took office in July.
During the 18 months the conflict has been going on, the current category of doctors – who are at the beginning of their careers and make up about half the workforce – have gone on strike for a total of 44 days, which has caused major disruptions in healthcare.
Laurenson and Trevedi state that despite the salary increase, doctors’ real salaries are almost 21 percent below the level in 2008.