The UGT-Servicios Públicos union has called for two strike days for physicians in the Canary Islands Health Service (SCS), scheduled for June 23 and July 23. The mobilization aims to "shed light at the end of the tunnel" for doctors on the islands, according to Francisco Javier Bautista Yanes, Secretary General of UGT-Servicios Públicos Canarias.
Bautista Yanes stated that while the union participated in state-level negotiations for the reform of the Marco Statute for healthcare personnel, which he described as "obsolete," key issues such as work organization, on-call duties, remuneration, and human resources must be resolved at the regional level. He urged the SCS and the Department of Health to engage in negotiations with the representative unions of the Sectoral Table.
The union leader also questioned the representation of some professional medical organizations, such as the State Confederation of Medical Unions (CESM), in the public healthcare system's negotiation bodies. He emphasized that any agreement must pass through the Health Sectoral Table, where CESM lacks legal representation.
Furthermore, he appealed to the Department of Finance to allocate the necessary economic resources for the demanded improvements, arguing that if funds exist for other areas of the regional administration, they should also be directed towards strengthening public healthcare. UGT rejects the notion that medical demands are purely corporatist, asserting that improved working conditions directly impact the quality of care and patient safety.
Among the primary demands is the homogeneous regulation of medical on-call duties across all healthcare centers in the Canary Islands. Dácil García, head of the UGT medical union, has denounced the current disparity in conditions, which vary by service or management, leading to differences among professionals. She called for a single on-call manual and improvements in post-duty rest periods, citing instances where medical staff work 48 consecutive hours with only 24 hours of rest.
Other demands include better material conditions during on-call shifts (rest and dining areas), full recognition of this time as effective working hours, family-work balance measures, more equitable planning of human resources in primary care, updating professional career paths, full payment of extraordinary bonuses, and a review of remuneration to account for factors like night shifts and arduous work. UGT maintains that Canary Islands doctors receive some of the lowest hourly rates within the National Health System.
The announced strikes will last 24 hours and will affect all public healthcare centers in the Canary Islands. The union has warned that if no progress is made in negotiations, they will consider further pressure measures and have requested an urgent meeting with the Department of Health.
