‘DOCTORS working unsocial hours must not have their pay cut,’ was the demand in a letter to Tory health secretary Hunt signed by 1,618 junior doctors, 193 consultants and 198 medical students.
The letter stated: ‘The government’s proposals will remove vital safeguards that penalise Trusts for overworking junior doctors. This is not safe for doctors or for patients.’ Junior doctors confirmed that this Saturday’s demonstration will go ahead and it be ‘bigger, better and louder’ than the last.
It will start at Waterloo Place at 2pm, march to Parliament Square and finish at 6pm. Junior doctors are furious at the Tory government’s attempt to impose a 90-hour working week on junior doctors and cut their pay by 30%. After the junior doctors announced a ballot for industrial action, health secretary Hunt began to wobble.~
Back-peddling, Hunt sent a letter to Dr Johann Malawana, Chair of the BMA Junior Doctors committee in which he claimed: ‘I can give an absolute guarantee that average pay for juniors will not reduce’ and ‘No junior doctor working full time will be expected to work on average more than 48 hours a week’.
News Line is pleased to print the full letter signed by more then 2,000 health workers, sent back to Hunt in response:
‘Dear Mr Hunt,
‘We represent junior doctors, general practitioners, consultants and also medical students who read with interest your letter to Dr Johann Malawana, Chair of the BMA Junior Doctors committee. Firstly, we welcome your recognition that “junior doctors play a vital role in the NHS”, and “already work seven days a week”.
‘However, doctors remain concerned over the association of complex “weekend effect” data with the current policy. We know that the national medical director of NHS England, Sir Bruce Keogh is on the record stating that “it is not possible to ascertain the extent to which these excess deaths may be preventable; to assume that they are avoidable would be rash and misleading”.
‘Secondly, we welcome that you would like to “see a work review system with teeth that ensures that juniors are not exploited and that addresses issues of overworking”. Yet we remain perplexed, as the government’s proposals will remove vital safeguards that penalise Trusts for overworking junior doctors. This is not safe for doctors or for patients.
‘Thirdly, we remain concerned that the removal of pay protection and pay progression intended to reflect clinical experience gained from years of NHS services will discourage doctors from carrying out medical research and disproportionately affect women who may work less than full time.
‘Finally, we welcome assurance that this policy is not a cost cutting exercise, but note that you say “on average”, doctors will not lose out. We feel strongly that not one hard-working doctor should be financially worse off, and that doctors working unsocial hours must not have their pay cut.
‘Mr Hunt, the NHS is a unique healthcare system that is the envy of the world, which despite the rhetoric to the contrary, consistently delivers compassionate, cost effective healthcare. This is not just about our pay: it is about our patients, it is about our NHS that we love so much, and it is about recognition of the care, sacrifice and dedication of NHS staff who routinely go above and beyond their contractual duties.
‘As you rightly state, junior doctors are “the backbone of medical care in hospitals”, as are the nurses, healthcare assistants, porters, pharmacists, radiographers, physiotherapists and all the other allied professionals who work with us. We, the undersigned, stand squarely behind the BMA, as we do not feel that the government has sufficiently changed its position by removing the required pre-conditions to negotiation.
‘The proposals remain unfair to doctors and unsafe for patients. We all hope a constructive dialogue can continue so we can resume negotiations and avert industrial action.
‘Yours sincerely,’
Signed by more than 2,000 health workers.