LONDON, June 19 -- The government of the United Kingdom issued the following news:
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Offer improves resident doctor pay, working conditions and career progression
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Ballot opened onThursday 18 June and will close on26 June
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Simple majority will end strikes long-term
Resident doctorswillseegreateropportunities forcareer progression,better pay and improvedworking conditionsif they voteforthegovernment's transformativeofferin a ballot.
The British Medical Association (BMA)isnowputting the offer tomembersfortheir say. Strikes set totake place this week were called offas a resultof this vote.
The government has carefully listened to feedback provided by the BMA Resident Doctors Committee on behalf of their membership and worked with themto strengthen and clarify the offer originally made in March.
The offer would see resident doctors benefit from pay structure reform, leading to more frequent pay rises as doctors gain key competencies and demonstrate increasing capability. The revised offer brings forward pay scale reform so that resident doctors experience the benefit of the pay rises faster compared with the offer set out in March.
Secretary of State for Health and Social Care James Murray said:
This transformative offer improves the pay, working conditions and job prospects of hardworking resident doctors.
It isa very goodoffer, andit'sone that will not get any better.
We now all have a chance to draw a line under the disruption ofstrikesand focus on getting on with the job of caring for patients and fixing our health service.
Resident doctors have had a 28.9% pay rise over the last three years - the highest anywhere in the public sector.
Under the offer,resident doctors would see an average pay rise of 4.9%this year, making resident doctors on average 35.2% better off than four years ago. There would be even higher pay rises on average for the lowest paid first year and second year doctors - at 6.2% and7.1%respectively.
The offer would also put money back in residentdoctors'pockets through the reimbursement of mandatory Royal College portfolio fees and mandatory examinations costs, often worth thousands of pounds. It would also raisethe Flexible Pay Premia for clinical academic resident doctorsto £10,000in recognition of theirunique contribution.
To tackle training bottleneckswhich canhindercareer progression, the offer wouldseeup to an additional 4,500 training postsimplementedover the next three years,including 1,000 next year.250of these roles will start inFebruary 2027. This builds on theimpact of theMedical Training Prioritisation Act-the new law this governmenthas already broughtin-whichis expected tohalve competition ratios for this year's applicants.
The offer also provides greater stability for Locally Employed Doctors who are employed on a different contract to most resident doctors, allowing them to progress more easily into higher training and improve their terms and conditions.
Professor Francesca Swords, National Medical Director for the NHS said:
We want the NHS to be the best place to work for resident doctors, and we know we haven't always got things right.
But we are turning things around; ending the frustration of payroll errors, providing faster turnaround on repaying expenses, and offering more training places - and we will not stop this important work.
Thisoffer agreed together with the BMA will increase pay further for resident doctors, reimburse them for expensive exam fees, ensure they have better training and job opportunities, and improve working conditions further.
I hope resident doctors are already starting to feel the difference, and I hope that they recognise the further significant improvements this deal could make for them.
In the most recent round of strikes, NHS staff delivered 94.1% of planned care,but everyday of strike action affects patients and colleagues,impactsthe NHS budget and delays improvements to working conditions.
If this offer is rejected in pursuit of further damaging industrial action, it will be operationally and financially impossible for the government tomaintainsuch a generous offer again.
Resident doctors have until Friday 26 Juneto vote on the offer, with a simple majority needed toproceedwith the offer and end the strikes for the long-term.
Despite major challenges, under this government, NHS staff are treating more patients than ever before.The overall waiting list is now 403,000 lower than in June 2024 and 171,000 lower than a year ago.
Thanks to our record investment,modernisationand the remarkable efforts of NHS staff across the country, we are making the NHS fit for the future.
Background:
The full offer is available to view here
An explainer is available here
Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.
