A former Miss England winner and junior doctor says she won't be taking part in industrial action this week - because she can't afford to strike. Dr Bhasha Mukherjee, 27, was the longest serving Miss England in the competition's history after she was crowned the winner in 2019.
The junior doctor is now currently working in a children's A&E and working towards becoming a qualified GP. She says she has decided not to join NHS colleagues on the picket line because she cannot afford to go on strike.
Bhasha supports the decision to go on strike but she could not cope with the financial burden of losing up to four days pay. Bhasha, who works at a hospital, said: "I absolutely support the strike movement, I voted to strike and at heart I am striking.
"The first lot of strike days fell on my annual leave which is usually decided for us. It was kind of an easier decision to not come to work. But this is four days worth of wages and four sick days or compassionate leave days.
"The whole point of this strike is for better pay and a lot of us are struggling. The first strike felt like it went to deaf ears. It played a part in me feeling a little bit hopeless.
"It's a wiser financial decision to go to work and get the wages rather than wait for a protentional wage increase. Because I work in children's A&E I pick up bugs from kids. I have to keep my sick leave to an absolute minimum.
"I know the massive impact it has on the team when one staff has a day off work. Not having enough doctors on the scene and how that impacts patient care. It's always helpful to have more hands on board.
"Giving that we have such a short amount time of play with, that was another reason I didn’t want to push that over. I didn’t want to jeopardise that if I had to go off sick. It didn’t make sense in my current situation, I'm currently buying a house. For me right now I'm sort of saving every penny right now.
"I know of at least one other person who cannot afford to strike. We have to foot our bills every month. Some people at least in the current climate maybe don’t have the savings to strike."
