Latest news with #MelissaRyan
Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Nurses could join doctors in wave of new NHS strikes after key vote
The Royal College of Nursing is furious nurses have been awarded a lower pay deal than doctors and its members have voted whether to accept a 3.6% rise Nurses are expected to reject their pay deal which could lead to them joining doctors on strike amid the prospect of a series of NHS walkouts. The Royal College of Nursing's 'indicative vote' on their 3.6% pay award closed on Sunday and it will be confirmed this week that members voted 'overwhelmingly' to reject the deal, the Times reported. Nurses are furious that for the second year running they have been given less than resident doctors, who have been awarded 5.4%. Tuesday is the final day of resident doctors' five-day strike and their members in the British Medical Association have a legal mandate for six months of strike action until January. The RCN has previously labelled it 'grotesque' that nurses were again being awarded less than doctors for 2025/26. The indicative vote would need to be followed by a formal ballot for strike action which is likely to take place in autumn. However RCN leaders will use the ballot to demand urgent talks with Government to avoid a walkout. It is reportedly open to talks on wider pay structures and career progression, not just headline pay. A spokesman for the RCN said: "The results will be announced to our members later this week. As the largest part of the NHS workforce, nursing staff do not feel valued and the government must urgently begin to turn that around." Ambulance and other hospital staff in the GMB union voted to reject their own 3.6% pay award last week, with strike action now being considered. The BMA consultants' committee, representing more senior doctors currently covering for striking colleagues, is also holding an indicative vote over a 4% pay deal it described as an "insult". Resident doctors - formerly known as junior doctors - are demanding a commitment to a full return to 2008 levels of pay, arguing that by the Retail Price Index Measure of inflation their real terms salaries are down a fifth since then. Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the BMA's resident doctors committee co-chairs 'have seriously underestimated me' after they walked out on last ditch talks to avert the five-day strike which started last Friday. Government sources have claimed the co-chairs appeared happy with a deal to postpone strikes, before announcing they would go ahead after going back to their full committee. The Guardian reports this deal would have involved hot meals when working overnight, some exam fees paid, funding for kit such as stethoscopes, improved mess rooms and changes to the way their postgraduate training rotations are organised. Footage taken by the Mirror shows co-chairs Dr Melissa Ryan and Dr Ross Nieuwoudt being heckled - with a passer-by shouting "bol****s to you" - as they arrived at Parliament for talks a fortnight ago to discuss 'creative solutions' to the strike, such as reducing training expenses. Tom Dolphin, BMA council chair, said resident doctors' salaries should reflect their responsibility for making "life and death decisions", adding: "Even nurses who've had a pretty bad time [are] not as badly off as doctors in terms of lost pay." While the BMA is adamant headline pay must rise, nurses are reported to be more open to talks on wider pay structures. The RCN has repeatedly complained that nurses can remain on the lowest rung of the NHS pay scale for decades. Reforms could allow them to move up the scale sooner as they gain experience. The RCN last engaged in strike action in late December 2022 and early January 2023 under the previous Tory government. The union's online survey of 345,000 members in England Wales and Northern Ireland, which is due later this week, will reportedly show a 'clear' rejection of the 3.6% award. Speaking last month, RCN General Secretary Nicola Ranger said: 'It is a grotesque decision to again favour doctor colleagues for higher increases than nursing and the rest of the NHS.' Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has pledged to outlaw strikes by doctors, bringing them into line with the police and army, if she becomes prime minister. A Downing Street spokesman said: "We hugely value the vital role of nurses and their contribution to patient care. That's why we've delivered two above inflation pay increases in 10 months, meaning for the first time ever nurses starting salaries have risen to over £30,000. "We have been clear we can't move any further on headline pay but we are committed to working with the RCN to improve their major concerns, including pay structure reform, concerns over career progression and wider working conditions."
See - Sada Elbalad
6 days ago
- Health
- See - Sada Elbalad
Thousands of Junior Doctors in England Strike over Pay Dispute
Israa Farhan Thousands of junior doctors across England have launched a five-day strike over pay, marking one of the longest walkouts in the history of the NHS. The industrial action, which began on Friday, is expected to cause widespread disruption to patient care throughout the country. The striking doctors, who are in the early stages of their medical careers and form the backbone of hospital and clinic operations, staged pickets outside NHS facilities after talks with the government collapsed. The National Health Service confirmed that emergency departments will remain open during the strike, while hospitals and clinics will make every effort to maintain scheduled appointments and offer care to as many patients as possible. The British Medical Association (BMA), representing the junior doctors, is demanding pay increases to restore earnings that it says have been eroded by more than 20 percent in real terms since 2008 due to inflation. Dr Melissa Ryan and Dr Ross Newbould, co-chairs of the BMA's junior doctors committee, highlighted that the pay gap has now widened to the extent that physician associates could earn 30 percent more than junior doctors in some cases. The government has warned that the strike will significantly impact healthcare services and patient waiting times, calling on doctors to return to negotiations. However, the BMA insists that fair pay is essential to retain talent and ensure safe staffing levels within the NHS. read more Gold prices rise, 21 Karat at EGP 3685 NATO's Role in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict US Expresses 'Strong Opposition' to New Turkish Military Operation in Syria Shoukry Meets Director-General of FAO Lavrov: confrontation bet. nuclear powers must be avoided News Iran Summons French Ambassador over Foreign Minister Remarks News Aboul Gheit Condemns Israeli Escalation in West Bank News Greek PM: Athens Plays Key Role in Improving Energy Security in Region News One Person Injured in Explosion at Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid News Israeli-Linked Hadassah Clinic in Moscow Treats Wounded Iranian IRGC Fighters Arts & Culture "Jurassic World Rebirth" Gets Streaming Date News China Launches Largest Ever Aircraft Carrier Videos & Features Tragedy Overshadows MC Alger Championship Celebration: One Fan Dead, 11 Injured After Stadium Fall Lifestyle Get to Know 2025 Eid Al Adha Prayer Times in Egypt Arts & Culture South Korean Actress Kang Seo-ha Dies at 31 after Cancer Battle Business Egyptian Pound Undervalued by 30%, Says Goldman Sachs Sports Get to Know 2025 WWE Evolution Results News "Tensions Escalate: Iran Probes Allegations of Indian Tech Collaboration with Israeli Intelligence" News Flights suspended at Port Sudan Airport after Drone Attacks
6 days ago
- Health
Doctors in England start a 5-day strike over pay
LONDON -- Thousands of doctors in England's state-funded health system walked off the job Friday in a five-day strike over pay that the government says will disrupt care for patients across the country. Resident doctors, those early in their careers who form the backbone of hospital and clinic care, took to picket lines outside hospitals after talks with the government broke down. The National Health Service said emergency departments would be open and hospitals and clinics would try to carry out as many scheduled appointments as possible. The doctors are seeking a pay raise to make up for what their union, the British Medical Association, says is a 20% real-terms pay cut since 2008. Dr. Melissa Ryan and Dr. Ross Nieuwoudt, chairs of the union's resident doctors committee, said 'pay erosion has now got to the point where a doctor's assistant can be paid up to 30% more than a resident doctor.' The government says doctors have received an average 28.9% increase and it will not offer more, but is willing to discuss improved working conditions. Prime Minister Keir Starmer urged the doctors to go back to work. 'Most people do not support these strikes. They know they will cause real damage,' he wrote in the Times newspaper. 'Behind the headlines are the patients whose lives will be blighted by this decision. The frustration and disappointment of necessary treatment delayed. And worse, late diagnoses and care that risks their long-term health," Starmer wrote. Health sector staff staged a series of rolling strikes over more than a year in 2023-24, seeking pay rises to offset the rising cost of living. The strikes forced tens of thousands of appointments and procedures to be postponed. The strikes hit efforts by the National Health Service to dig out of an appointment backlog that ballooned after the COVID-19 pandemic and led to longer waiting times to see a doctor. The strikes stopped after the Labour government elected in July 2024 gave doctors a raise, but the union held a new strike vote last month.
New Indian Express
6 days ago
- Health
- New Indian Express
England doctors begin five-day strike over pay dispute, disrupting NHS care nationwide
LONDON: Thousands of doctors in England's state-funded health system walked off the job Friday in a five-day strike over pay that the government says will disrupt care for patients across the country. Resident doctors, those early in their careers who form the backbone of hospital and clinic care, took to picket lines outside hospitals after talks with the government broke down. The National Health Service said emergency departments would be open and hospitals and clinics would try to carry out as many scheduled appointments as possible. The doctors are seeking a pay raise to make up for what their union, the British Medical Association, says is a 20% real-terms pay cut since 2008. Dr. Melissa Ryan and Dr. Ross Nieuwoudt, chairs of the union's resident doctors committee, said 'pay erosion has now got to the point where a doctor's assistant can be paid up to 30% more than a resident doctor.' The government says doctors have received an average 28.9% increase and it will not offer more, but is willing to discuss improved working conditions. Prime Minister Keir Starmer urged the doctors to go back to work. 'Most people do not support these strikes. They know they will cause real damage,' he wrote in the Times newspaper. 'Behind the headlines are the patients whose lives will be blighted by this decision. The frustration and disappointment of necessary treatment delayed. And worse, late diagnoses and care that risks their long-term health," Starmer wrote. Health sector staff staged a series of rolling strikes over more than a year in 2023-24, seeking pay rises to offset the rising cost of living. The strikes forced tens of thousands of appointments and procedures to be postponed. The strikes hit efforts by the National Health Service to dig out of an appointment backlog that ballooned after the COVID-19 pandemic and led to longer waiting times to see a doctor. The strikes stopped after the Labour government elected in July 2024 gave doctors a raise, but the union held a new strike vote last month.
News18
6 days ago
- Health
- News18
Doctors in England start 5-day strike over pay
Agency: PTI London, Jul 25 (AP) Thousands of doctors in England's state-funded health system walked off the job Friday in a five-day strike over pay that the government says will disrupt care for patients across the country. Resident doctors, those early in their careers who form the backbone of hospital and clinic care, took to picket lines outside hospitals after talks with the government broke down. The National Health Service said emergency departments would be open and hospitals and clinics would try to carry out as many scheduled appointments as possible. The doctors are seeking a pay raise to make up for what their union, the British Medical Association, says is a 20 per cent real-terms pay cut since 2008. Dr. Melissa Ryan and Dr. Ross Nieuwoudt, chairs of the union's resident doctors committee, said 'pay erosion has now got to the point where a doctor's assistant can be paid up to 30 per cent more than a resident doctor." The government says doctors have received an average 28.9 per cent increase and it will not offer more, but is willing to discuss improved working conditions. Prime Minister Keir Starmer urged the doctors to go back to work. 'Most people do not support these strikes. They know they will cause real damage," he wrote in the Times newspaper. 'Behind the headlines are the patients whose lives will be blighted by this decision. The frustration and disappointment of necessary treatment delayed. And worse, late diagnoses and care that risks their long-term health," Starmer wrote. Health sector staff staged a series of rolling strikes over more than a year in 2023-24, seeking pay rises to offset the rising cost of living. The strikes forced tens of thousands of appointments and procedures to be postponed. The strikes hit efforts by the National Health Service to dig out of an appointment backlog that ballooned after the COVID-19 pandemic and led to longer waiting times to see a doctor. The strikes stopped after the Labour government elected in July 2024 gave doctors a raise, but the union held a new strike vote last month. (AP) GRS GRS view comments First Published: July 25, 2025, 14:15 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
