Strikes Support for Resident Doctor
Guidance for NHS staff on managing strikes
Resident Doctor Strikes – England, Nov 2025
The BMA is calling for a full walkout of resident doctors in England from 06:59 on Friday 14 November until 06:59 on Wednesday 19 November. All resident doctors are asked not to begin shifts during this period.
Considerations for NHS Management
Key areas to manage during the strike:
Self-Assessment of Impact
Actions to take:
- Assigned Duties by Person Report
(Rostering > Assigned Hours > Assigned Duties by Person)- Review staff scheduled to work
- Set the date range
- Include columns: grade, required grade type, and category
- Filter by Doctor Grade Type if needed
- Export reports to Excel for further analysis
- For mitigation:
- Use the Staff Availability Report
- Or the Incident Plan Reports to identify available staff by grade or skill
Unavailability Considerations
Ensure all absences are correctly recorded for accurate reporting:
- Configure unavailability for Industrial Action:
- Unpaid Unauth Special Hrs – Absences of a day or less
- Unpaid Unauthorised Special – Absences of more than a day
- Check if reasons need to be configured for payroll extracts (per ESR UN3244)
- Follow the Standard Optima Payroll Configuration guide for setting up new reasons
Rostering Considerations
Manage available staff effectively using Optima tools:
- Use Activity Views and Activity by Location Views to track unavailable staff by department
- Quick assign options allow you to assign available staff to activities efficiently
Useful Resources and Links
How to Minimise Service Disruption
Here to Help – Workforce & Operations
Resident Doctor Strike | Overview
Let’s create a generational shift together.
From rota design to exception reporting, every action matters. Together, we can make working in the NHS sustainable for resident doctors, and safer for patients.