Isle of Man Christmas Day cover

Find out what Christmas Day cover entails, and how you can take part in the Isle of Man.

Location: Isle of Man
Audience: All doctors
Updated: Tuesday 14 January 2025

Manx Care have failed to present an acceptable offer to improve Isle of Man doctors’ pay, so we will be taking strike action on 22 and 23 January 2025.

All doctors employed by Manx Care are eligible to take part, including consultants, SAS doctors, and resident doctors.

The action will begin at 7am on Wednesday 22 January and end at 7am on Friday 24 January.

Because all secondary care doctors can participate in this action together, we will not be staging a full walkout at this time. Instead we are taking a form of strike action known as Christmas Day cover. Christmas Day cover allows us to continue to provide emergency care and ensures our co-ordinated action is safe for patients, but all elective and non-emergency work will be cancelled. 

 

Please note

 

As your union, we can support BMA members who face pressure from employers or any other issues due to taking action. If you encounter any such difficulties, or would like further advice on your rights when taking industrial action, you should contact us as soon as possible.

 

We are not able to support any non-members who decide to take industrial action. We would urge you and your colleagues to join the BMA in advance of the industrial action.

Definition of 'Christmas Day' cover model

Unlike the full walkout model, where there is a complete withdrawal of labour, on days of Christmas Day cover action the BMA will be signing off on limited exceptions to strike action. 

The level of staffing mirrors what could be expected on Christmas Day – both in terms of the number of doctors, and the places and departments they will be working in. Some places (eg certain A&E departments) may see little change from a non-strike day, while there may be no doctors in other departments (eg outpatients).

 

Emergency duty rotas and advance planning

Having been provided with sufficient notice of the industrial action, employers must cancel all scheduled (non-emergency) work before, on the days, and after industrial action. This includes routine appointments, operations, treatments and procedures. This will allow for the on-call teams and working staff to provide the necessary inpatient emergency care.

Employers should make their plans on the basis that most doctors will not be working on the days of industrial action.

Check if you are on an emergency rota

Ahead of the strike, doctors should check whether they have been scheduled to provide emergency care on the day of industrial action. Specifically, they should see if their name has been included on an on-call or shift rota – what we would describe as emergency duty rotas.

If you are on an emergency rota

You should attend work as usual if you are on an emergency duty rota. Those on-call should remain contactable in case of emergency during the on-call period. 

If you are not on an emergency rota and wish to strike

Finish your shift if you are already at work. As per the GMC’s Good Medical Practice, you are responsible for ensuring an effective handover. This is essential as part of a patient’s continuity of care. 

 

A&E Doctors

A&E doctors provide cover on Christmas Day, and therefore, for this form of industrial action, they should attend their work.

 

Non-clinical activities, additional responsibilities and external duties

These do not constitute emergency care and so if you are taking part in industrial action you should not undertake them.

 

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