Zimbabwe sacks more doctors over strike

The number of doctors sacked by the Zimbabwean for embarking on strike over pay rise has risen from 77 to 211, according to the body in charge of public health service in the country.

The doctors were “found guilty of absenting themselves from duty without leave or reasonable cause” for five or more days, according to a statement from the Health Service Board (HSB).

The HSB said almost a third of all doctors – 516 out of 1,601 employed in government-funded hospitals – either have faced or will face disciplinary tribunals even as the Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors Association has not commented on this latest news, but had earlier complained of intimidation, Reuters news agency reports.

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“What we get paid is no longer enough for food or rent,” Zimbabwean Dr. Lindsey Robertson told BBC Newsday earlier this week.

Zimbabwe is in the midst of an economic crisis and high inflation has severely eroded people’s earnings.

The real value of a doctor’s salary has, therefore, plummeted to the equivalent of less than $100 (£80) a month.

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