Resident doctors say that they have a “creative discussion” with the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, and the talks will continue in the next few days, in an attempt to stop the planned strike action.
Doctors, earlier known as junior doctors, announced last week that they would go out for five consecutive days from July 25 to July 30 in a dispute about payment.
Representatives of the Doctor Union, BMA said that the discussions so far involuntary to see the “creative solution” and “nothing”.
The government has insisted that it cannot improve its proposal for 5.4% increment for this year, but is considering other measures to improve the condition of work.
Speaking directly after the talks, Mr. Streeting said: “We have a constructive conversation with BMA today and we would be talking further in the coming days to try to stop the strike action.
“While we cannot proceed on salary after 28.9% increment, we are working on areas where we can improve working life for resident doctors.
“Strike has a serious cost for patients, so I am appealing to BMA to call them and instead work together to improve the working conditions of my members and continue the reconstruction of NHS.”
Representatives of the BMA Union said that there was a “window of opportunity” for further negotiations.
Dr. Ross Neuvoud said: “We discovered many issues, talked about a lot of things at a high level, looking at the creative solutions to find a real passage to improve the value of being a doctor in the UK.
“Nothing is completely away from the table.”
Resident doctors for this financial year were awarded an average of 5.4% increment, which will go to pay packets from August after 22% increase in the last two years.
The BMA argues that the salary of resident doctors in real terms is about 20% lower than in 2008.
The claim is based on a measure of inflation called called called retail price index (RPI). This includes housing costs and interest on student loans and some other inflation shows a higher price increase than measures.
The BMA says that this year’s 5.4% increase does not enough to take them down sufficiently to restore the salary at its price 17 years ago.
Announcing the strike last week, Dr. Melissa Ryan and Dr. Ross Neuvoud said that doctors were left with “no choice”, without “a reliable proposal to keep us in the way to restore our salary”.
However, Streeting called the strike a “unnecessary and inappropriate”, saying: “NHS hangs from a thread. Why are they threatening to pull it on earth?”
He says that resident doctors have received the biggest increment of any public sector employees in the last three years and the government will not offer to move forward.
But recent talks suggest that other measures are being considered, including improving doctors’ working conditions.
Resident doctors participated in 11 separate strikes during 2023 and 2024.
To end the previous attacks last year, the incoming labor government has increased by 22% in two years.
Action in England will not affect the residents of Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, who interact directly with their developed governments on salary.
The basic salary of doctors resident doctors in England currently range from £ 37,000 to £ 70,000 per year, based on their years of experience, with additional payments for working nightshifts and weekends.
