Doctors to Ballot for Industrial Action

Doctors on the Isle of Man are to ballot for industrial action, the BMA has announced.

This will be the first time that doctors on the Isle of Man have been balloted for industrial action.

Isle of Man doctors who are employed by Manx Care – the healthcare system operated by the government – are asking for a 12.6% uplift in pay for the 23/24 pay year.

The BMA says that since 2008, inflation on the island has increased by 56.3% with some consultants seeing a real terms cut of 29%.

Extra Cash

It added that this is compounded by the lack of access to local clinical excellence awards (CEAs). The CEA scheme is an incentive programme which allows NHS consultants to earn extra money on top of their salary for outstanding work or research.

Isle of Man doctors have not had access to the scheme since 2004.

Chair of the Isle of Man Medical Society, Dr Prakash Thiagarajan said: “No doctor wants to go on strike, but we’ve been trying to improve working conditions for doctors on the Isle of Man by other means for years, to no avail. Doctors on the Isle of Man deserve to be paid fairly for the work they do.

“Manx Care can still stop this from going any further by addressing the severe real terms pay cuts that Isle of Man doctors have endured.”

Ballot

The BMA will announce the dates of the ballot in the next few weeks with 155 doctors will be able to vote in the ballot.

A small group of doctors – specialty trainee doctors who work on the island but are employed by the North-West lead employer, and partner GPs will not be eligible.

Chair of council of the BMA, Professor Phil Banfield added: “I’ve heard from doctors on the Isle of Man how deeply frustrated they are.

“They are over stretched and underpaid. Resident, consultant and SAS doctors across the UK have successfully taken action and started the journey to restoring the relative lost value of their pay for the work they do.

“Doctors on the Isle of Man deserve the same. The BMA stands ready to support Manx doctors in fighting for appropriate recognition of their skills and expertise.”