Resident doctors across Northern Ireland are taking part in a 24-hour walkout over pay.
The strike started at 7am on Monday and will go on until 6.59am on Tuesday.
Resident doctors, who are qualified doctors in clinical training, in hospitals and GP surgeries are staging the action amid a demand for full pay restoration. It follows strike action by consultants and specialist doctors last week.
The British Medical Association (BMA), a trade union and professional organisation, said that all doctors in Northern Ireland are in dispute with the Department of Health over the imposition of the 2025/26 General Medical Services (GMS) contract.
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Dr Steven Montgomery, chairman of BMA’s Northern Ireland resident doctors committee, said they feel they have been left with no choice other than to strike.
“Pay erosion for resident doctors still sits at up to 20 per cent since 2008 and we lag behind our colleagues in the rest of the UK and in the south of Ireland on pay,” he said.
“Add to that, growing patient numbers without the necessary number of doctors needed to meet this demand and pressure, alongside younger doctors looking to leave the health service to work elsewhere for better pay and working conditions.
“It is unfortunately a perfect storm for our health service.
“The health minister can bury his head in the sand about this problem all he wants but the numbers speak for themselves: there are not enough doctors to treat our growing, ageing population as our waiting list crisis demonstrates.”
In response, Minister for Health Mike Nesbitt said he was “disappointed” that the action had been taken.
“This follows a 24-hour period of industrial action by consultants and specialist and associate specialist doctors Thursday into Friday last week,” he said.
“It is important to stress that the vast majority of services across the ... system are proceeding as planned. All patients with scheduled appointments on either day should attend as planned unless they have been directly contacted to advise their appointment has been postponed.”
Mr Nesbitt said he remained committed to implementing the pay award as recommended by the independent Doctors’ and Dentists’ Pay Review Body. But he said he was unable to do so until Stormont ministers agreed a budget for the year.
“This action is being taken on the mandate of less than a quarter of the medical workforce in Northern Ireland,” he said.
“Overall, only 24.8 per cent of doctors locally have voted to take this action. I am very grateful to those who recognise the impacts strike action will have on our population, and for their commitment to provide continuity of service.
“The uplift recommended by the review body for 26/27 is 3.5 per cent, which is higher than that for other healthcare professionals working in health and social care. It comes on top of an average cumulative pay uplift over the last three years of 30 per cent for resident doctors; 25 per cent for specialty, associate specialist, and specialist doctors; and 24 per cent for consultants.” – PA
