When junior doctors in Gwynedd took to the picket line on Monday, 25 March they were joined by Dwyfor Meirionydd MS Mabon ap Gwynfor.
BMA Cymru Wales announced new strike dates in March for junior doctors, who staged a three-day walkout in January, followed by another 72-hour strike in February. The latest action sees a 96-hour walkout from Monday, 25 March until Good Friday.
Dr Oba Babs-Osibodu and Dr Peter Fahey co-chairs of BMA’s junior doctors committee said that they “remain ready to enter discussions if a credible offer is presented by the Welsh Government”.
“No doctor wants to strike, but whilst those in power fail to grasp the seriousness of the situation and the strength of feeling amongst our members we feel we have been left with no choice,” they said.
Mabon ap Gwynfor MS said on Monday, 25 March: “Junior doctors have seen their pay eroded continuously and is nearly a third less in real terms today than what it was 15 years ago.
“The NHS is nothing without its dedicated workforce and that workforce deserves to be remunerated properly and to have the right working environment to provide the best care that they can.
“I joined junior doctors on the picket line outside Ysbyty Gwynedd today in solidarity with their calls for full pay restoration.
“They told me of the enormous pressure they are under, the low morale amongst staff, and the debilitating impact of staff retention issues.
“The decision to take industrial action is not one that they will have taken lightly. It is a profound disappointment that the Welsh Labour government continues to fail to grasp the seriousness of the situation and I call again on the health minister to properly engage with the BMA and restore full pay to our hard-working junior doctors.
“Our doctors are leaving Wales in droves to work in Australia and elsewhere where they are shown greater respect.
“The government can't afford not to improve their offer, or we will sadly see more leaving. Therefore, getting around the table and resolving this is an urgent necessity.”