Rabu, 30 Mei 2012

Pension reforms: Doctors vote to strike on June 21

Pension reforms: Doctors vote to strike on June 21

  • Strike date of June 21 set
  • Thousands of GP appointments and hospital operations will be cancelled
  • Doctors will only undertake duties that cannot safely be postponed
  • GPs voted by 13,837 to 3,687 to take action short of a strike and by 11,062 to 6,426 in favour of strikes
  • Industrial action will be first time doctors have gone on strike since 1975
  • 104,000 doctors across the UK were balloted and there was a 50 per cent turnout

By Graham Smith

PUBLISHED: 03:28 EST, 30 May 2012 | UPDATED: 12:16 EST, 30 May 2012


Doctors have voted in favour of taking industrial action for the first time in almost 40 years.

The move deals a major blow to ministers' hopes of resolving the dispute over pension changes.

Thousands of GP appointments and hospital operations will now be cancelled on June 21 when the first 24-hour strike goes ahead.

Summer of strikes? Doctors have voted in favour of taking industrial action for the first time in almost 40 years in a move that deals a major blow to ministers' hopes of resolving the dispute

Summer of strikes? Doctors have voted in favour of taking industrial action for the first time in almost 40 years in a move that deals a major blow to ministers' hopes of resolving the dispute

The British Medical Association said it was taking action 'very reluctantly' but attacked the Government for going back on a deal on pensions agreed four years ago.

Dr Hamish Meldrum, chairman of council at the BMA, said: 'We are taking this step very reluctantly, and would far prefer to negotiate for a fairer solution.

'But this clear mandate for action - on a very high turnout - reflects just how let down doctors feel by the Government's unwillingness to find a fairer approach to the latest pension changes and its refusal to acknowledge the major reforms of 2008 that made the NHS scheme sustainable in the long term.

'Non-urgent work will be postponed and, although this will be disruptive to the NHS, doctors will ensure patient safety is protected.

'All urgent and emergency care will be provided and we will work closely with managers so that anyone whose care is going to be affected can be given as much notice as possible.'

Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said: 'The public will not understand or sympathise with the BMA if they call for industrial action over their pensions.

'People know that pension reform is needed as people live longer and to be fair in future for everyone. We have been clear that the NHS pension scheme is, and will remain, one of the best available anywhere.

'Every doctor within ten years of retirement will receive the pension they expected, when they expected.

Dr Hamish Meldrum, chairman of council at the BMA, said: 'We are taking this step very reluctantly, and would far prefer to negotiate for a fairer solution' Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said: 'The public will not understand or sympathise with the BMA if they call for industrial action over their pensions'

Loggerheads: Dr Hamish Meldrum (left), chairman of council at the BMA, claimed the strike was called 'very reluctantly' while Health Secretary Andrew Lansley (right) said the public 'will not understand or sympathise with the BMA'

'Today's newly qualified doctor who works to 65 will get the same pension as the average consultant retiring today would receive at 60 - the BMA have already accepted a pension age of 65.

'If doctors choose to work to 68 then they could expect to receive a larger pension of £68,000.'

Six separate ballots were held, for GPs, consultants, junior doctors, staff associates and specialist doctors and occupational and community health doctors.

GPs voted by 13,837 to 3,687 to take action short of a strike and by 11,062 to 6,426 in favour of strikes.

The last time doctors took industrial action was in 1975, when consultants suspended goodwill activities and worked to contract over a contractual dispute, and junior doctors worked to a 40-hour week because of dissatisfaction with the progress of contract negotiations.

The BMA argues that higher paid NHS staff already pay proportionately more for their pensions than most other public sector workers, a disparity which it said increased in April when their contributions went up, and which is set to rise again.

By 2014, some doctors will see deductions of 14.5 per cent from their pay for their pensions, compared with 7.35 per cent for senior civil servants on similar salaries, to receive similar pensions, said the BMA.

Doctors currently at the start of their careers would be hardest hit, having to pay hundreds of thousands of pounds extra - double what they would have paid - in lifetime pensions contributions, according to the association.

There was a 50 per cent turnout in the ballots, with doctors being asked if they were prepared to take part in a strike, or industrial action short of a strike.

Industrial action: Doctors on strike will only undertake duties that cannot safely be postponed

Industrial action: Doctors on strike will only undertake duties that cannot safely be postponed

The results break down as follows:

  • GPs voted by 13,837 to 3,687 for action short of a strike, a 78 per cent majority, and by 11,062 to 6,426 to strike
  • Consultants backed action short of a strike by 15,733 to 2,938, an 84 per cent majority, and by 13,637 to 5,021 for strikes
  • Junior doctors voted by 11,113 to 928 for action short of a strike, a 92 per cent majority, and by 9,863 to 2,177 to strike
  • Specialist doctors backed action other than strikes by 3,030 to 435, an 87 per cent majority, and by 2,644 to 807 for strikes
  • Occupational medicine doctors rejected action short of a strike by 25 to 16 and voted by 27 to 14 against striking
  • Community health doctors supported action short of a strike by 294 to 97, a 75 per cent majority, and by 235 to 155 for strikes.

Dr Meldrum said: 'There will be some inconvenience, but the last thing we want to do is harm patients when our real bone of contention is with the Government.'

Doctors have been hit by a pay freeze and increased workload so the increased pension contributions were the 'final straw'.

Given the strength of feeling among doctors, the BMA had no choice but to call action among its members across the UK.

But Dean Royles, director of the NHS Employers organisation, said: 'We are deeply disappointed with the announcement from the BMA about their decision to take industrial action.

'Doctors know that any industrial action will impact on care and cause distress and disruption to patients and undermine trust and confidence in the medical profession.

'Doctors will now work locally with NHS trusts to assess the impact on local services and to consider the important question of communication with patients and public.'

Here's what other readers have said. Why not add your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards.

The comments below have not been moderated.

  • Newest
  • Oldest
  • Best rated
  • Worst rated

Why can doctors not reap the benefits of studying and working hard all their careers? Seems to me as though half the workforce in this country are jealous or can't be bothered to get themselves somewhere in life and so when those who have, disagree with losing what they have worked damn hard for, they want them penalised. Doctors do a difficult job and often get little or no praise. Infact they get slated at every turn by ungrateful people who expect them to be gods and make everything better and to be able to tell if symptoms that match a million illnesses are one specific thing! Let the doctors keep their benefits and instead take the money of the lazy ones in this society who seem to be able to get everything for nothing.

Report abuse

Marvellous - just concerned about their gold plated pensions. The public sector just thinks the gravy train can go on and on and the taxpayer will pick up the bill - well it can't and we won't - get used to it and deal with it. If you don't like it quit and go do something else - end of.

Report abuse

All you extremely well paid GPs out there....welcome to planet earth. research tells me you may only be getting slightly over 50k pension + a pretty hefty lump sum, poor things.

Report abuse

So multinationals like Vodafone get let off billions tax, the 1% top earners get their tax rate reduced, despite arranging to pay less tax than everyone else anyway, and this government wonder why the rest of don't think it is fair when you have spent all your working life paying into one pension scheme only to have it pulled out from under you at the last minute. In the USA, if you earn money there, you pay tax there, no matter where you claim to live. If everyone paid their fair share of tax, we could afford the NHS, and spend alot more on it too.

Report abuse

I love how people can sit there and slate doctors when those people only 'know' what doctors do and work through the press and we all know the press never lies. Surely you cannot comment unless you are a medic or know one and know the true facts. Junior doctors do regularly break the EU directive as you can’t just leave a sick patient so they often finish 2 hours late, however when the trust audit the hours worked it is put down as 'voluntary training' so the trust appears compliant with the EWTD and do not get fined. If you work out an F1 doctors hourly wage, based on the hours they actually work, it is around £6-7 a hour the same as many unskilled workers, hmm I know who I would rather have trying to save my life. When you know the facts then I will take your comments seriously. I support medics for their strike, when podiatrists and other health care professionals went on strike we did not get this abuse, the situation is the same for doctors so why slate them? Why is it the public

Report abuse

any prospective medical student will say in their personal statement when applying for medical school that they wish to become a doctor so that they can help their fellow man. if they said that one of the motivating factors was a high salary, high pension or even just a secure career it is unlikley they would be accepted for training. isn't it strange then that after receiving the subsidized training(nhs bursaries) that the vision changes, suddenly its 'we're worth it, had we gone into alternative fields we could have got more', i recall that in the old soviet union doctors actuall got paid less than some manual workers(miners etc) on the basis that the job /vocation was reward in itself, i think i would rather be treated by doctors with that viewpoint than the money grabbing lot we have today.

Report abuse

I am feeling very dishearted by all the negative comments about GPs on here: I have worked extremely hard for the last 10 yrs, caring for my pts as family, my social life has been non-existent at times due to appalling shift patterns we have been in a pay freeze for the past few years so my pay has only increased due to me becoming more experienced. I don't want to work until I'm 68 I'm not sure Drs would be entirely safe at this age. I realise in this day of cut backs etc that GPs are seen as the fat cats of the NHS and in some cases this maybe justified, but not the whole, the GP earning 300k is usually mentioned but this is not the norm. I earn a lot less as a soon newly appointed partner soon will be paying almost 25% of my pay to my pension. I work from 7.30am to 8pm 4 days 1/2 days a wk with alternate weekend mornings (on call - something we don't have to do anymore but I do). I believe in fairness - MPs pensions haven't been changed at all b ut ours have, in 2008 now

Report abuse

"ge salaries they are paid, they can surely save a little extra for their own pensions......Just look their homes and the cars they drive, it says it all ????" I still have £20k of student debt despite being 6 years out of medical school, cannot afford a car, am still renting a 1 bedroom flat with my expecting wife and trying to figure how in hell we can buy somewhere in the next 5 years. The pension changes mean yet more money out of my salary. I already spend £3k a year on exams, courses and professional fees just to continue in my career. But what do you care. Much easier to swallow the DoH line and turn on the doctors.

Report abuse

As a surgeon, this is not about the money.Try working 56 hours in a row , in theatre dealing with major trauma, in the middle of the night, with no day off afterwards, when you are 68. It's not safe for the doctors having to do it but most of all it's not safe for patients!

Report abuse

I applaud the doctors.They stick together like Unions used to.Cameroon will uturn on this because he knows its a battle he cant win and anyway most of them vote tory which is a laugh in its self.poor old lansley will be moved soon before the whole nhs crumbles before him.

Report abuse

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

Diposting oleh di

Tidak ada komentar:

Posting Komentar

Langganan: Posting Komentar (Atom)