Resident doctors in England will walk out for six consecutive days beginning 7 April, after the British Medical Association‘s Resident Doctors Committee (RDC) rejected the government’s latest pay and jobs offer.
The action will run from 7am on 7 April to 6.59am on 13 April. It is the 15th round of industrial action by resident doctors since March 2023.
What Was on the Table
The government’s offer included a 3.5% pay award for 2026/27, reforms to pay progression phased over three years, reimbursement of mandatory Royal College exam fees from April 2026, and a minimum of 4,000 additional specialty training posts over three years.
The RDC rejected the package. Negotiators said that, at the last moment, the government reduced the value of its original pay investment and stretched it across three years.
The BMA argues this amounts to a real-terms pay cut when set against current inflation.
Why Doctors Are Striking
The BMA has been calling for a commitment to increase pay by around 26% over the next several years, citing significant pay erosion since 2008.
The union says real-term salaries have fallen by approximately one-fifth since then, measured against the RPI inflation index.
There are also long-standing concerns about job availability.
Figures show as many as 33,000 doctors competing for as few as 10,000 specialty training places, a bottleneck that leaves many stuck in lower-level roles with limited career progression.
Dr Jack Fletcher, chair of the RDC, said the union had been negotiating in good faith.
“As talks progressed it became clear that the money proposed for pay increases was now going to be spread over three years.
This is combined with today’s pay review body recommendation of a 3.5% uplift pointing to yet more years in which our pay, at best, barely treads water,” he said. He added that the door to negotiations remained open.
The Government’s Position
The government described the rejected deal as historic, saying it would have boosted pay, enhanced career opportunities, and improved working conditions.
It noted that resident doctors will still receive the 3.5% award recommended by the independent pay review body, though significantly less than what was on offer.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said his door remains open, urging the RDC to reconsider before strikes begin.
Impact on NHS Services
Thousands of planned hospital appointments are expected to be cancelled as a result of the action.
NHS Employers has confirmed the dates and directed trusts to its industrial action guidance.
The financial toll is significant. Each round of strike action is estimated to cost the NHS more than £200 million to manage.
Emergency and urgent care will continue, but hospitals are expected to reschedule non-urgent procedures and redeploy senior staff to cover gaps.
