LONDON: Junior doctors in Britain voted Thursday to stage their first “all-out” strikes in the history of the National Health Service (NHS) in a fierce pay row with the government.

Almost 28,000 junior doctors cast their vote, with 98 per cent in favour of strikes and two per cent against, the British Medical Association (BMA) said.

They will conduct a 24-hour strike on Dec 1, providing only emergency care.

But there will be full walkouts between 8.00am and 5.00pm on Dec 8 and on Dec 16, threatening mass disruption to the NHS and the cancellation of outpatient clinics and non-urgent operations.

Junior doctors are qualified medical practitioners who are working while studying for postgraduate qualifications to become consultants or general practitioners.

They make up around half of the medical workforce in Britain.

They are angry about new contracts being implemented next year which will cut the number of shifts which are classed as “unsociable” — weekends and nights — and paid at a premium rate.

Published in Dawn, November 20th, 2015