Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on December 1, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleEngland's resident doctors will strike for five days from December 17 over pay disputes, demanding a 29% rise to match 2008 levels.
LONDON, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Resident doctors in England will stage a five-day strike starting on December 17, timed just before Christmas, citing the government's failure to make a credible offer on jobs and pay, a union representing them said on Monday.
The British Medical Association, which has been locked in a months-long dispute with the government on behalf of resident doctors, says the government's 5.4% pay offer does not address years of salary erosion when adjusting for inflation, while the government says the deal is fair and affordable.
Resident doctors, previously known as junior doctors, carried out five days of strike actions last month and another five-day walkout in July after the government said it could not meet their demands for an improved pay deal this year.
Last year the then newly elected Labour government quickly reached a settlement with the doctors for a 22% pay rise as part of its pledge to fix the National Health Service and in hopes to draw a line under the long-running dispute.
The BMA has been seeking a 29% rise this year to restore pay to what it said was 2008 levels in real terms. Health minister Wes Streeting wrote to the union last month stressing the "enormous financial pressures facing the country mean I am not able to go further on pay".
The government did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the latest planned strike.
(Reporting by Muvija M; Writing by Catarina Demony)
Inflation is the rate at which the general level of prices for goods and services rises, eroding purchasing power. It is typically measured as an annual percentage increase.
A pay rise, also known as a salary increase, is an adjustment to an employee's wage or salary, often reflecting increased responsibilities, performance, or cost of living adjustments.
A union is an organized group of workers who come together to make decisions about the terms and conditions of their work, including pay, benefits, and working conditions.
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