Industrial action in Scotland
We campaign for fair pay for all dentists in Scotland. This mandate includes negotiating with the Scottish Government and, when all other options have been exhausted, coordinating industrial action.
Fair pay for hospital dentists in Scotland
We are continuing our campaign for fair pay for hospital dentists.
Our shared view with the BMA is that the resident doctors and dentists contract negotiations, which are part of the 2023 agreement, have progressed insufficiently, with no new pay mechanism and no credible in-year pay offer.
We therefore remain in formal dispute with the Scottish Government about your pay.
BMA Resident Doctors’ strike action in Scotland
A statement has been issued by BMA Scotland’s Resident Doctors Committee, advising that their members have voted in favour of strike action. A 96-hour strike has been announced which will run from 07:00 on 13 January until 07:00 17 January 2026.
Although we are united with the BMA in its pay restoration campaign, we do not currently have a mandate for equivalent strike action; we will therefore not be calling on our resident members to strike alongside their BMA colleagues in Scotland.
If you choose to strike with your medical colleagues, this action will not be lawful, and you will not be guaranteed protection from dismissal.
Trade unions are required by law to ballot their members independently. Even though hospital dentists and doctors work on the same contracts, the BDA and BMA will need to conduct separate ballots.
Only dual qualified resident dentists who are also BMA members can participate in the upcoming strike action.
To ensure you are included in any upcoming BDA Scotland ballots or referenda, please submit your information.
We cannot ballot members without three specific pieces of information:
- Current training grade
- Name of Placement Health Board
- Location of workplace.
There is also a short section at the end of this survey to share your views about industrial action.
We cannot act without a comprehensive steer from our resident members. It is also critical that we get ballot ready should we choose to proceed to a ballot and potential strike action.
Please direct any queries regarding the BMA’s upcoming action in Scotland to [email protected]