BDA condemns end of seniority pay
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- Published: Saturday, 17 December 2011 20:19
- Written by News Editor
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| Experienced dentists feel angry and let-down at news that an expected extension to the deadline for joining the seniority pay scheme may not be forthcoming, Dr John Milne, Chair of the BDA’s General Dental Practice Committee, has warned. The BDA has been informed at a very late stage of the process for putting an extension in place that legal difficulties may prevent that happening. |
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The deadline was previously extended in 2009, allowing new entrants to the scheme up to March 2011. It was expected it would be extended once again to allow a replacement scheme that will reward quality to be developed and implemented.
Dr Milne spoke of the anger among the practitioners he represents and warned that it could prompt colleagues to consider their futures in the NHS:
“Dentists are understandably angry and dismayed at the prospect of losing up to £7,000 per year from a fund to which they have contributed during their careers. To take away the ability of the most senior practitioners to benefit from a scheme they have paid into all of their professional lives, at a time when we should be celebrating and harnessing their expertise and experience, would be very misguided.
“We know that older dentists earn less than their younger colleagues as their work rate slows and their UDA targets are more difficult to achieve. Scrapping the scheme would remove an essential incentive for committed NHS practitioners and threaten the loss of experienced dentists to the NHS.”
The BDA is continuing to explore options for a sensible and equitable resolution to the issue
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