What is the junior doctors' dispute about?
The dispute is around improved working conditions and improved pay in reration to overtime working. you have to work 80 hours a week before vou can claim an extra-duty allowance. ana us acoenes on cue consultant signing an authorisation for the claim. Technically the finance department can refuse to pay it out, and there are several surgeons in Sheffield who will not sign auLy Clams ne new corusce robosca Dov sal bara Castle, while it reduces the basic working week to 40 hours, offers only 30 per cent of the basic hourly rate for overtime, and only 10 per cent for 'on Cal CUrV we are demaneno mat over time should be paid at not less than the basic hourly rate.
What do you think junior hospital doctors should be doing? The junior hospital doctors must be clear orme implicauons or tner mi The demands they are raising for realisno overume payments will miringe on the Government's £6 pay policy. Junior nosprai doctors negouators realise this, and that is why they have accepted Castle's proposals.
If we are to fight the Government, we have to be clear on the demans we are raising and the way in which we or case the strugsie anding. (a) recognaon or tne qunour week: (b) realistic rates for working in excess of the 40 hour week; (c) the STEVE LUDLAM, East London IS Hospital Workers He moved a series of unsuccessful amendments to the MCAPP resolution to celete me cemands for a workers enquiry, the opening or the books, anc the call for a sliding scale.
SUE LISTER, Oxford ASTMS 'In Oxford we found the only way was to fight for the opening of the books We did not do this for management to prove that thev are broke, but as bart of a struggle to supervise and control ine uevelopment or resources to satsity the health requirements of workers.' ers enquiry to determine the number At the moment adequate treatment.
will affect are the patients, who are conference spelt this out clearly. into the NHS, struggle for solidarity is to be done.
Dues its policies then it may well be a Tory Government we are fighting ag aInst We should be demFought to be doing this through the otTicianiabour movement.. creation of extra posts for doctors to relieve the existing workload; (d) a workof doctors necessary to give the patients It is no use junior hospital doctors going on strike if the only people this already suffering from a declining service. We need to set up action committees and campaign inside the labour m movement for support for our demands. The resolution passed at the MCAPP DES BELL, AUEW Shop Steward, James Neill Engineering, Shaffield *This resolution states it is a programme for struggle. That is what it is - struggle against the cuts, struggie tor the protec tion of the NHS against inflation, strug gle for the immediate injection of funds with the health workers' fight. It also says what is to be done, and how it is to be done - it does not quite say when it 'I would like to add a little bit if 1 may. Time may be very precious. Because if the present Government contin'On time scale we should be deciding now about another national conference and regional local conferences, and we Wiser -movement ment