Junior doctors' pay: How does your job compare?
15 October 2015
Government proposals to change the way junior doctors get paid have triggered anger in the profession. But how does the pay for junior doctors compare with other jobs? Basic salary for junior doctors starts at about PS23,000 but increases in the second year to about PS28,000 (Pay for doctors - NHS Careers). For a doctor in specialist training, the basic salary is between PS30,000 and PS47,000. Junior doctors get more for working extra and anti-social hours (currently classified as outside 07:00 to 19:00 Monday to Friday) on top of the basic salary, which boosts their income. According to figures from the NHS Employers Organisation, the average total salary for a doctor in training is around PS37,000. The new contract changes anti-social hours to outside 07:00 to 22:00 Monday to Saturday, making Saturday between 07:00 and 22:00 part of a junior doctor's normal working week. The change to Saturday working has angered doctors, who say it will reduce overtime pay and cut salaries. The Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, has indicated he may be prepared to reconsider his plan to reclassify working on Saturdays. The Department of Health thinks the new contract is a better deal. It says it will increase the basic salary for doctors and improve training so that junior doctors will not get paid less on average overall. The move is part of the drive towards seven-day working in the NHS. Working alongside doctors, a fully qualified nurse starts on about PS22,000. Hours worked on Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays and on weekdays between 20:00 and 06:00 receive a pay premium. The Royal College of Nursing says it will challenge any proposal by the government to scrap or undermine unsocial hours payments. Outside of the medical profession, a teacher starts on about PS23,000, according to the teachers' union, the NUT. Graduates start out on salaries ranging from about PS21,000 to PS37,000, according to the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR). At the top of the scale are law and banking, while public sector and retail pay rests at the bottom. The average starting salary for a corporate investment banker is about PS35,000 to PS40,000, according to the graduate job website Prospects.ac.uk. After three or more years, salaries may rise above PS50,000. In countries such as Australia, doctors receive tax breaks for a proportion of their income assigned to everything from rent or mortgage to eating out at restaurants. Some junior doctors in the UK complain about having to pay for hospital parking and what they see as over-priced hospital food, although hospitals may offer subsidised parking and meals. Other professions boast a range of unusual perks, including free climbing walls for office workers, staying at home on your birthday at a tech start-up and even a dog to pat at an advertising firm. For doctors, though, rewards come in making a difference to patients' lives and, in the long term, a healthy salary. Consultants in England earn from PS60,000 to more than PS100,000, while salaried GPs earn from about PS55,000 to PS80,000 or more (Pay for doctors - NHS Careers).
Working alongside doctors, a fully qualified nurse starts on about PS22,000. Hours worked on Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays and on weekdays between 20:00 and 06:00 receive a pay premium. The Royal College of Nursing says it will challenge any proposal by the government to scrap or undermine unsocial hours payments. Outside of the medical profession, a teacher starts on about PS23,000, according to the teachers' union, the NUT. Graduates start out on salaries ranging from about PS21,000 to PS37,000, according to the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR). At the top of the scale are law and banking, while public sector and retail pay rests at the bottom. The average starting salary for a corporate investment banker is about PS35,000 to PS40,000, according to the graduate job website Prospects.ac.uk. After three or more years, salaries may rise above PS50,000.
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How does doctors' pay compare with other professions?
In countries such as Australia, doctors receive tax breaks for a proportion of their income assigned to everything from rent or mortgage to eating out at restaurants. Some junior doctors in the UK complain about having to pay for hospital parking and what they see as over-priced hospital food, although hospitals may offer subsidised parking and meals. Other professions boast a range of unusual perks, including free climbing walls for office workers, staying at home on your birthday at a tech start-up and even a dog to pat at an advertising firm. For doctors, though, rewards come in making a difference to patients' lives and, in the long term, a healthy salary. Consultants in England earn from PS60,000 to more than PS100,000, while salaried GPs earn from about PS55,000 to PS80,000 or more (Pay for doctors - NHS Careers).
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What about perks?