Mozambique: Doctors at Maputo Central Hospital threaten to stop working overtime

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Mozambique: Doctors at Maputo Central Hospital threaten to stop working overtime

12:51 CAT | 26 May 2025

FILE - For illustration purposes only. [File photo: Lusa]

Doctors working at Maputo Central Hospital (HCM), the largest in the country and one of the health units in the Mozambican capital, are threatening to stop working overtime from 1 June, demanding overdue overtime payment.

In a letter addressed to the director-general of HCM, consulted by Lusa this Sunday, the professionals say that they will stop working from 3:30 pm every day, as well as on holidays and weekends, until the outstanding amounts are settled. The issue is the non-payment of overtime in the profession, which has been going on for 13 months, they say.

The last strike by doctors at that hospital took place between May and July last year, culminating in agreements between the profession and the hospital management, which were not fulfilled, the doctors maintain in their letter.

“After numerous meetings, what we have seen is that payment is not being made in the manner previously agreed, and there are still debts from 2024 (January to April and August to December) and the five months of 2025,” the document alleges.

According to the doctors, this situation has led to “significant physical, emotional and financial strain”.

“This position taken by the HCM general management is a real step backwards in relation to what was agreed in previous meetings between the parties, in which resident doctors were urged to give the company a vote of confidence in resolving the problems concerning the process of paying overtime,” it adds.

On May 12, Mozambique’s health minister called for dialogue to halt strikes in the health sector, stating that the government was working to improve working conditions for nurses and other health professionals.

“There are many problems that have already been overcome and we are overcoming them, mainly through dialogue. We are open to dialogue, because I am aware that there are challenges in the sector, I do not deny this, but together we will overcome them. We are seeking consensus within the sector to resolve the class problem,” Minister Ussene Isse declared.

For three years, the health sector has faced strikes and stoppages called by the Association of United and Solidary Health Professionals of Mozambique (APSUSM), which represents around 65,000 health professionals from different departments.

The Mozambican National Health System has faced several moments of pressure in the last two years, caused by strikes called by the Medical Association of Mozambique (AMM), also demanding improvements in working conditions.

According to the most recent data from the Ministry of Health, Mozambique has a total of 1,778 health units, of which 107 are health posts, three are specialized hospitals, four are central hospitals, seven are general hospitals, seven are provincial, 22 are rural and 47 are district hospitals.

Source: Lusa