Junior Doctor Pay Dispute: Everything You Need To Know

You may have heard that Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has been besieged for the last few months by incensed junior doctors - not normally the most militant of healthcare workers.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has been forced to back down and has now promised junior doctors an 11% pay rise in a hope to stop them going on strike.

The British Medical Association (BMA) is due to hold a ballot asking its members if they want to take industrial action.

Protesters marching through London (Picture: Rex)

So why is it that these relatively high-earning doctors are marching in the street and singing satirical protest songs? Here are just a few Q&As to give you the skinny on the dispute:

What is the dispute about?
Mr Hunt wants to change hospital doctors’ working contracts as part of a series of proposals to increase the range of services available seven days a week.
Around 6,000 lives are lost every year because of a lack of senior staff working in NHS hospitals on weekends, he has claimed.
Mr Hunt insists the lack of a consistent seven-day hospital service means patients are 15% more likely to die if they are admitted on a Sunday compared with a Wednesday.

Which days do hospital doctors currently have to work?
Junior doctors already work weekends and nights and Mr Hunt has promised the changes will cut the number of “unsociable” hours they work.
The current consultant contract means senior doctors can opt out of weekend work as long as it is non-emergency - although they are still expected to be on call. The contract was last negotiated by Labour in 2003.

Not so happy healthcare workers (Picture: Rex)

What are the changes Mr Hunt wants to introduce?
The Health Secretary wants to remove the ability to opt out from weekend and evening working from consultants’ contracts. He is also pledging a cutback in the lucrative overtime payments consultants can get.
The BMA, which represents 153,000 doctors, claims Mr Hunt has failed to outline concrete proposals to ensure there will not be fewer doctors on wards from Monday to Friday.

What would the strike mean for patients?
Doctors can only take industrial action if it does not affect emergency care.
Medical staff still have to work to make sure they are on standby for urgent cases.
If junior doctors go on strike it could mean a disruption to non-emergency hospital services.

What weekend effect? (Picture: Rex)