UK doctors' union suspends planned strikes, set to vote on new offer
Resident Doctors in England Suspend Strikes Following Government Offer
Background of the Planned Strikes
June 13 (Reuters) - Resident doctors in England have called off strikes due to start next week after the government made a "last-minute" offer that will be put to a vote of union members, the British Medical Association said on Saturday.
Details of the Government Offer
Referendum and Suspension of Strikes
The union said its UK Resident Doctors Committee would hold a referendum on the offer, and that strikes planned from June 15 would be suspended while the vote takes place.
Pay Raise and Future Increases
The BMA said the new offer would deliver an average 6.6% pay raise by April 2027, in combination with this year's pay review body recommendation, with a further increase to follow.
Union Response and Member Judgment
Committee Chair's Statement
Criteria for Member Approval
"We have always been clear that no strikes needed to go ahead if we received an offer appropriate to put to our members," committee chair Jack Fletcher said, adding that the offer would be judged by members on whether it addressed doctor unemployment and pay erosion.
Timeline and Previous Negotiations
The now-suspended walkout by resident doctors had been scheduled to run from June 15 to June 19, after their union said health minister James Murray had not improved a pay offer doctors had already rejected.
(Reporting by Ananya Palyekar in Bengaluru; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
