Medical unions ask the Spanish Government for a new interlocutor with "capacity" for agreements

The unions that make up the strike committee — theBasque Medical Union, the Spanish Confederation of Medical Unions, the Andalusian Medical Union, Metges de Catalunya, the Association of Doctors and Senior Graduates of Madrid and the Independent Medical Union of Galicia — believe that the appointment of another interlocutor for the negotiation is essential for the restoration of the situation.

The strike committee responded this afternoon to the letter sent by the Ministry of Health to the trade unions this morning with a strict statement, one by one refuting the contentsofthe letter on the Framework Statute .

TheDepartment headed by Monica Garciasent the letter to the unions before the start of the meeting of the Interterritorial Health Council, which sought to address the main points of the conflict with the health officials of the communities and to try to conclude the agreement, but this was not the case.

In the trade union letter, the Ministry of Health reiterates that "dialogue "is the" best tool " for channelling the conflict and adds that maintaining strike calls when possible avenues for agreement are open does not help to move forward.

"Attempted diversion of responsibility"

Once again, the Ministry's words have not been welcomed by the trade unions, who believethat the representatives sitting at the negotiating table have shown no willingness to compromise.

"It is a lie that the strike committee has broken the negotiation and it is a lie that we have maintained the strike with possible avenues of agreement.  The solution is only feasible when it is accepted by both parties and not when it is decided by one party," says the statement. 

According to the trade unions, theFramework Statute does not contain most of their demands, and it is false to say that the claims that have been excluded are the competence of the Autonomous Communities.

Doctors also believe that the "legal reasons" for not creating a statute of their own that takes into account the peculiarities of their profession is an excuse. They see behind it a "political position." 

The trade unions have said that it is also up to the Ministry to set up its own negotiating table. "It is false to say that it is up to the communities." However, having said that, they have added that "in any case, the fact that the negotiating tableis the competence of the communities does not mean that the Ministry should not "coordinate" them.

For all these reasons, the note states that Garcia's team is "trying to divert responsibility" because they have not been "able" to conduct the negotiations.  Thus, the unions want interlocutors with "capacity" for agreements.