07 May 2026
Junior Doctors in the UK to Begin Five Consecutive Day Strike Next Month
Doctors in England are preparing to stage a five-day strike in November, due to disputes regarding pay and employment.
Strike Details
The British Medical Association (BMA) announced that resident doctors will strike for five consecutive days from 7am on 14 November to 7am on 19 November.
Resident doctors, who constitute about half of all medical staff in the National Health Service, are taking this action after unsuccessful talks with the government.
Causes of the Walkout
Dr Jack Fletcher stated, “This is not where we wanted to be. We have been negotiating for the past week with government, pressing the health minister to end the crisis of doctors going unemployed.”
“We know from our own survey half of second-year doctors in England are facing unemployment, their talents being unused whilst millions of patients endure long waits for care and hospital shifts go unfilled. This cannot continue.”
He added, “We negotiated sincerely, keen for the health secretary to understand that a deal offering solutions to slowly restore the cuts to pay over several years, giving newly trained doctors a raise of only £1 per hour for the coming four years.”
“We trusted the authorities would see that our asks are not just reasonable but are in the best interests of the community and our those we treat and would also help stop our doctors departing from the health service.”
About Resident Doctors
Resident doctors have anywhere up to eight years’ experience practicing in hospitals, based on their field, or as many as three years in primary care.
More details are expected shortly.