The health ministry last night assured that it will put measures in place to minimise the impact of any interruptions to health-care service if the country’s doctors go on strike. This after president of the Jamaica Medical Doctors’ Association (JMDA) Dr Jubilee Brown-Service said the association “cannot guarantee normalcy in the health sector” if the Industrial Disputes Tribunal (IDT) does not hand down, by Friday, a long-awaited ruling on the matter of overtime rates.

“The Ministry of Health and Wellness acknowledges the concerns of the Jamaica Medical Doctors’ Association regarding the delivery of a decision by the Industrial Disputes Tribunal in relation to the dispute over overtime payments and related matters. The ministry is also awaiting the decision of the IDT, an independent statutory body established to determine and settle industrial disputes referred to it; and urges the continued patience of all parties, given the complexity of the matters under consideration by the tribunal,” the health ministry said in a release.

“The ministry, through the regional health authorities, will… put in place measures to limit any possible impact on the patients who visit health facilities,” it added.

The dispute, which dates back to 2023, was referred to the IDT in 2025. According to the JMDA its case was completed before the IDT on April 1.

“The JMDA has been consistent. We’ve placed our case before the IDT with great detail, and today we summarised our case. The JMDA remains resolute in our position. We’ve worked. We deserve a ruling. Our patience has been exhausted. And so today we are stating publicly that if there is no ruling by Friday, October 2, 2026, the JMDA cannot guarantee normalcy within the health sector across the island,” said Brown-Service.

Underscoring that doctors are still being paid at 2021 rates, the JMDA said the continued delay in implementing the new rates under the compensation restructure is “resulting in an accumulating cost that will have to be paid”.

According to the JMDA the Government owes the body $31 billion in retroactive overtime, but the Government’s calculation sits at $23 billion.

Immediate past president of the JMDA Dr Renee Badroe told Tuesday’s media briefing that doctors racked up a significant overtime bill because of shortages in manpower.

Doctors say if there is no ruling in their wage dispute with the Government by Friday, October 2, 2026, they cannot guarantee normalcy within the health sector across the island (Photo: Adobe Stock)

“That overtime can extend up to 80 hours consecutively. They did not listen to us when we explained to them several times that doctors work a lot of overtime. We asked if they could afford it. The then minister of finance said, ‘Yes, we can afford it’. Now we are at the IDT, 42 months later. The matter is still unresolved. And we are here and we are suffering under the unfair treatment of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Health,” she lamented.

Responding to questions posed by journalists, Dr Badroe shared that the only response received from the IDT “was a statement given to a media host that was aired in a programme where the Chairman [Errol Miller] stated that he’s not obligated to adhere to any ultimatum given by the union”.

That disclosure quickly sparked backlash from industrial relations consultant Opposition Senator Lambert Brown, who said Miller “should apologise to Jamaica” for his comment.

“The reality is that the delay is unacceptable. This is an essential service. It is even more essential because poor people depend on this service. Some can fly out to go abroad for treatment. Some can go to private hospital. But hundreds of thousands of Jamaicans depend on the health centres and the hospitals. And because it’s an essential service, greater expedition should be paid to resolving the disputes,” said Brown.

“It is a cop-out to say that six months is reasonable… The tribunal cannot sit on its laurels and say six months for an essential service dispute is fine,” he added.

When the Observer contacted the IDT for a response, it was advised that the body is not able to comment on the matter as it is actively being reviewed.