Resident doctors in England have announced a six-day strike.
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Staff from the British Medical Association (BMA) are to strike at the same time as a planned walk out by resident doctors.
Resident doctors in England have announced a six-day strike starting at 7am on April 7 in an ongoing row over jobs and pay.
Shortly after the action was announced the GMB union said that staff at the BMA will also strike on April 6 and April 7 in a row over pay erosion.
Employees at the doctors’ union are already planning a walk out later this week on Friday and Saturday.
GMB said the BMA’s most recent pay offer to its staff of 2.75% is lower than the 3.5% awarded to doctors by the Government, which the BMA described as a “crushing blow to doctors in England”.
Gavin Davies, GMB senior organiser, said: “These strikes have laid bare the BMA’s ongoing hypocrisy.
“Our members want to focus on doing what they do best: supporting their members at work.
“But just like the resident doctors they support, they cannot continue to accept another year of pay erosion while the cost of living continues to spiral.
“We are urging the BMA to come back to the table with a constructive offer that recognises our members’ value.”
A BMA spokesperson said: “We recognise the strength of feeling among our staff and respect their right to take part in a democratic ballot.
“Our staff play a vital role in supporting the work of the organisation and we value the dedication and professionalism they bring to their roles.
“We remain committed to negotiations with the GMB to work towards a resolution and want to continue open and meaningful dialogue in the hope of reaching a settlement that is fair to staff and sustainable for the organisation.
“We had previously increased our original offer to staff from an uplift of 2% to 2.75%, plus an additional £1,000 consolidated offer for colleagues in the lower paid grades.
“This is in addition to enhanced paid paternity leave (four weeks) and an extra three days annual leave, taking the total for 2026 to 34 days plus bank holidays.
“Given the BMA’s ongoing financial recovery plan, this increased offer puts the Association at the very limit of keeping that recovery on track to give the BMA a sound financial footing for the future.
“We will now work to ensure we can continue to provide key and critical services for our members during the strike period.
“We remain committed and open to an ongoing dialogue with our GMB colleagues and hope we can still settle the dispute.”
