Czech doctors starting mass exodus in protest
Prague - A hired lawyer's office has started sending mass notices of Czech doctors from hospitals within their protest against low salaries, Czech Doctors' Union (LOK-SCL) chairman Martin Engel told CTK today.
So far, some 3800 doctors, mainly from crucial medical fields such as anaesthesiology and surgery, have been mentioned as having given their notices.
As a result, if they really leave the hospitals, some of them will have to stop performing surgeries on March 1 when the notices take effect.
"We will only publish the figures after all the notices are sent. We will not publish them partly," Engel said.
Health care may be threatened in 78 out of the 190 Czech hospitals.
Within the "Thank You, We Are Leaving" campaign of the Doctors' Trade Unions thousands of hospital doctors have announced that they are prepared to give a notice as of the end of the year if their salaries are not raised to 1.5 to three times the average pay in the country depending on their qualification.
A Czech doctor has an average monthly pay of some 50,000 crowns, including overtime. The unions call for a base pay of 70,000 crowns per month.
The average national monthly pay is about 23,600 crowns.
Engel said he would only ask the doctors to withdraw their notices if their pay demands were met in full.
Engel said concessions were no longer possible.
The drive was launched by the trade union in March. Organisers have visited Czech hospitals in a black and white ambulance car since mid-September.
Engel said during the whole time no politician had reacted to the doctors' demands.
The Health Ministry press department said no talks with the trade unions were scheduled for this week.
Health Minister Leos Heger (TOP 09) has called on the doctors to wait with the notices until the planned reform is launched. The reform is to send more money to the salaries.
He said he would wait till early January when he would learn the exact number of departing doctors.
Engel has dismissed Heger's criticism that the trade unions were exerting pressure.
He said the doctors had published their demands almost a year before they would start leaving the hospitals.
http://www.ceskenoviny.cz
As a result, if they really leave the hospitals, some of them will have to stop performing surgeries on March 1 when the notices take effect.
"We will only publish the figures after all the notices are sent. We will not publish them partly," Engel said.
Health care may be threatened in 78 out of the 190 Czech hospitals.
Within the "Thank You, We Are Leaving" campaign of the Doctors' Trade Unions thousands of hospital doctors have announced that they are prepared to give a notice as of the end of the year if their salaries are not raised to 1.5 to three times the average pay in the country depending on their qualification.
A Czech doctor has an average monthly pay of some 50,000 crowns, including overtime. The unions call for a base pay of 70,000 crowns per month.
The average national monthly pay is about 23,600 crowns.
Engel said he would only ask the doctors to withdraw their notices if their pay demands were met in full.
Engel said concessions were no longer possible.
The drive was launched by the trade union in March. Organisers have visited Czech hospitals in a black and white ambulance car since mid-September.
Engel said during the whole time no politician had reacted to the doctors' demands.
The Health Ministry press department said no talks with the trade unions were scheduled for this week.
Health Minister Leos Heger (TOP 09) has called on the doctors to wait with the notices until the planned reform is launched. The reform is to send more money to the salaries.
He said he would wait till early January when he would learn the exact number of departing doctors.
Engel has dismissed Heger's criticism that the trade unions were exerting pressure.
He said the doctors had published their demands almost a year before they would start leaving the hospitals.
http://www.ceskenoviny.cz
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