Why are junior doctors going on strike?
We need some background first.
First of all. We need to know how much does a junior doctor earn.
Their salary range is £29,384 to £58,398, depending on experience. However these figures do not incorporate bonus pay for out of hours working and oncall commitments. Allowing for those the average is above £50k.
So what’s the problem?
The BMA is the doctors union. It is asking the government to reverse what they say is a real-term pay cut experienced by the doctors since 2009.
To rectify this, the government would need to award doctors a 35 per cent increase for 2022-23, according to the BMA.
So. Is it just about money? Partly. It is also about how they feel they are perceived in the modern NHS, especially a feeling of lack of respect.
There are two other reasons why are junior doctors are striking
1. Debt – after on average five years of medical school, they then have two further years of foundation training (F1 and F2). I.e it’s a very long haul with huge debts incurred during the undergraduate years – often over £100k.
With that debt, and the salaries above, they feel they cannot live as they wish, especially with the cost of living crisis.
2. Other colleagues on more pay – they work shoulder to shoulder with Physician Associates (PAs) and Advanced Clinical Practitioners (ACPs) who do similar work but start on £37k per year – having done a two year degree.
Medical apprenticeships – also this year a new type of training for a doctor, called a medical apprenticeship, is starting. They will be training on the shoulders of other doctors as an apprentice, and be paid. Many JDs feel this devalues their medical degree.
Alternative view
However the alternative view is that junior doctors pay described above does not incorporate bonus pay for out of hours working and oncall commitments. And many professions including teaching start on less than brilliant pay. Also many will become senior doctors (hospital consultants and GPs) who can be paid £90-120k per year – plus private practice if they wish – for up to 30 years.
Summary
We hope you know understand why junior doctors are going on strike. It is a complicated issue, as we have discussed – and not just about money. They feel devalued, unsupported and not respected generally.
