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Young doctors in the Czech Republic have challenged the existing system, which forces them to work overtime without adequate pay and rest with the government, after weeks of negotiations, finally bowing to pressure and preparing new legislation.
The doctors, led by the Young Doctors Section of the Czech Medical Chamber, planned to strike as of December 2023 by refusing to undertake any overtime. This would cause significant issues within the Czech system as it relies on the extra, unpaid hours put in by medical staff.
So far, almost 6,000 doctors said they would participate, with nurses and other healthcare workers considering joining their ranks, representatives of young doctors and health and medical unions warned.
But the main issue is not overtime, but rather a legislated rest period, which is currently not included in Czech law.
“I sincerely hope there will be no terminations [refusals to work overtime] on 1 December. If we did not reach an agreement, it would really lead to a reduction in health care, at least the scheduled one,” said Jan Přáda, a representative of the Czech Medical Chamber’s Young Doctors Section.
According to him, not only young doctors want to protest against the system and demonstratively end with overtime, “but also experienced ones.”
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