ACT hospital doctors striking for higher salaries will escalate their action with a one-hour work stoppage this week, the medical officers' union has said.
Doctors will step away from some non-clinical duties during the stoppage without affecting patient care, Australian Salaried Medical Officers Federation (ASMOF) ACT president Jeffrey Looi said.
"The industrial action will be carried out in a manner that will not endanger the safety of any patient or any other person," Associate Professor Looi said.
"The further bans include attendance at certain non clinical meetings."
ASMOF ACT has almost 300 members employed across Canberra Hospital, North Canberra Hospital and the University of Canberra hospital.
The additional work ban comes after union members began their strike on September 23 for a wage increase that kept up with inflation.
Doctors refused to take calls outside of rostered hours and did not participate in promotional and administrative duties last week.
"Doctors have previously rejected an ACT government offer that would have left ACT doctors up to 10 per cent worse off," Associate Professor Looi said.
He said the first week of the strike had "a good response" and a number of doctors were joining the union to participate in the industrial action.
The ASMOF president said union members expect to continue striking for at least a fortnight with further work bans being added next week.
"It is likely additional and more frequent stoppages will occur over coming weeks," he said.
The stoppage is said to occur after midday on Thursday, October 3.
Associate Professor Looi blamed the ACT government after junior doctors were forced out of Canberra Hospital's orthopaedics department over supervision concerns.
"We have seen this weekend the loss of yet another vital area of training for Canberra doctors, this time in orthopaedics, as a direct consequence of the ACT's inability to recruit and retain senior medical staff," he said.
"Yet the ACT government continues to ignore that Canberra doctors are the second-lowest paid in Australia and while that situation remains we simply cannot fill the vacancies we have, let alone expand services to meet the growing health needs of Canberrans."
The president also accused the government of using the election period as an excuse not to address the pay deal.
"ASMOF members advised the ACT Government nearly 2 years ago of the problems with their offer and it was again rejected in a ballot in early July this year," a statement from the union said.
An ACT government spokesperson previously said the bargaining team was restricted during the ongoing caretaker period and could not make commitments that would bind an incoming government.
After writing to Labor, Liberal and Greens parties in the ACT election with a proposal to support competitive salaries for doctors in the public system on par with other states, ASMOF said none had responded positively.
