Junior doctors are continuing to strike over the ongoing pay row.
The strikes started at 7am on Saturday and will be continued until 11.59pm tonight.
NHS staff have experienced pay cuts for over a decade and many have decided it cannot carry on any longer. This will mark the tenth strike by junior doctors since March 2023.
The effects of strikes have been hit the NHS hard, with over 1 million appointments cancelled or rescheduled since 2022.
Fifth year medical student Sabrina Sajjad said: “It’s been really difficult, more pressure has been put on us medical students, trying to fill in and cover for junior doctors, but obviously we cannot compensate for the work they do so it’s been tough on all at the NHS.
“I agree with the strike’s movement because the pay for not only junior doctors, but all NHS staff is absolutely disgraceful considering the tireless work they put in.
“The government has been stretching the NHS for years and enough is enough.”
In January, junior doctors in England staged the biggest strike in NHS history, lasting six days. Now they are taking part in an extra five-day strike as they call for further pay rises from the government.
Junior doctors already received a pay rise of almost 9% this financial year, but the British Medical Association (BMA) are now asking for a 35% “pay restoration” as a starting position but are willing to negotiate.
Not just the BMA junior doctors, but members of the Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association (HCSA) have also walked out as part of the strikes.
As junior doctors are set to return to work, it is now down to negotiations between the unions and the government to agree on a deal.
Featured image (c) Cassie Ward
