After 66% of junior physicians in England voted for the deal, the British Medical Association junior doctors committee accepted the 22.3% government pay settlement.
Junior doctors, who will now be called “resident doctors”, have been in dispute with the government since October 2022. They took 44 days of strike action after more than 10 years of real pay cuts.
The average pay settlement over the two years in dispute is 22,3%. The average pay increase for 2023-24 is 4.05%, in addition to the 8.8% previously granted. The average pay increase for last year is now 13.2% and backdated to April of 2023.
The remaining pay rise comes from the 2024-25 recommended pay award, announced in July. This gave junior doctors a pay boost of an average of 8% for all grades.
The deal, which was agreed by Wes Streeting and the BMA leadership only three weeks after he took office, will see the government and junior physicians working together to address wider workforce issues such as training and rotational positions.
The co-chairs of the Junior Doctors Committee, Dr Robert Laurenson & Dr VivekTrivedi, said: “It shouldn’t have taken this long. But we have shown that it is possible with our resolve and a government who will sit down to talk about realistic options for paying restoration. One strike is too many.
This deal ends 15 years of wage erosion and begins two years modest pay increases above inflation. It is still a way off, as doctors are still 20.8% behind 2008 in real terms.
“Mr Streeting acknowledged that our pay had fallen behind, and he has spoken about a journey towards pay restoration. He believes that the independent pay review board is the best vehicle to achieve this. If he’s right, then doctors will no longer need to strike over their pay. In the event that the pay review body fails, he must be prepared to face the consequences.”
Streeting stated: “We inherited an NHS that was broken, the most devastating dispute ever in the history of the health service, and we hadn’t had any negotiations with the previous ministers for months.” The situation should not have gotten this bad.
Relief sigh
Danny Mortimer said, “Health leaders are going to breathe a huge sigh of relieve knowing that the pay dispute between government and resident doctors has been resolved.” Our members did not want to see more strikes during what will be a difficult winter.
Industrial action has had an enormous impact on the NHS in the past two years. More than 1.5 million operations and appointments have been cancelled, at a cost estimated to be around PS3 billion.
While there is still much to be done to address the concerns raised by residents, such as quality of education, work, and rotation system, we are hopeful that discussions can now move forward.
Laurenson and Trivedi continued: “The resident doctor committee, as we’ll be called, will use the next few months to prepare for building on their success, so that future generations of doctors will never have to experience the same kind of pay cut we did. We are grateful to all the doctors who have stood on pickets and fought for their rights. “The campaign isn’t over but we can all be proud of the progress we have made.”
The government also agreed to work with doctors’ unions to streamline how resident doctors report extra hours worked, so that they can be paid for their work. The government has also agreed to reform the system of rotational education for junior doctors and review the training bottlenecks imposed by previous governments, which have been blamed for the shortages of consultants.
Junior doctors that are members of Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association vote separately (closing on Sunday, 22 September) to accept or reject the pay settlement.
“Resident doctors” – a new title that reflects experience
The BMA announced last week that junior doctors – the group of staff that makes up almost a quarter all doctors in Britain – will now be referred to as “resident doctors” from 18 September. This title better reflects their wide range of skills, responsibilities and qualifications.
The junior doctors’ conference in April of 2023 voted for the abolition of the title “junior doctor”, because it implied that they were students, apprentices, and not fully qualified. The BMA endorsed the move and began negotiating a new title.
The titles “doctors”, “postgraduate doctors”, and “doctors” were all rejected as they could be used for consultants, SAS doctors, or GPs. The term “trainee doctor” was seen as having the same problems as “junior”, and may even be more likely to misunderstand by patients and members of the public to mean “student doctors”. The phrase “non-consultant doctors in hospital” was deemed too long.
The doctors chose “resident” as the term to avoid confusion with their colleagues, because it doesn’t imply that they lack qualifications and is short enough to use every day. This term is used in many other countries.
A survey conducted in February of this year found that 91% of junior doctors were in favor of the switch from “junior doctor” to “resident”. This was also approved by the BMA at its annual representative meeting held in July. Streeting has approved the change.
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