LONDON – Thousands of British doctors have begun a 48-hour strike in an acrimonious dispute over a new contract.
The junior doctors will only provide emergency medical care during the walkout, which started Wednesday morning. National Health Service officials say more than 5,000 medical procedures have been cancelled.
It’s the doctors’ third strike of the year, with more planned.
The strikes stem from a dispute over pay and working conditions between the government and the British Medical Association. A key sticking point is payment for weekend shifts and whether Saturday should be treated as a normal working day.
The government has said it will impose the contract after negotiations failed. The medical association is seeking to challenge that in the courts.
Junior doctors are physicians with up to 10 years’ experience.
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