Hospital doctors go on strike in six German states

Hospital doctors in six of Germany's 16 states began a one-day strike on Thursday in the latest of a wave of employment disputes to disrupt the country this year.
Several thousand participants were expected at a rally in the Bavarian capital Munich, according to the Marburger Bund association of German doctors, which is demanding a 2.5% pay increase for 55,000 doctors working in municipal hospitals.
"Our members do not feel taken seriously by the employers so far. We have the impression that the employers want to delay the collective bargaining," said its president, Andreas Botzlar.
Doctors also planned walk-outs in the states of Baden-Württemberg, Hesse, North Rhine Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland.
According to the union, emergency treatment of patients is guaranteed in affected clinics.
Strike action this year affected a number of sectors in Germany, but caused the most chaos in transport, paralysing air and rail connections, as well as municipal bus services.