Overview

• EsSalud formalized the strike as illegal and warned of administrative sanctions, including pay deductions and disciplinary processes for employees who do not return to work.
• The Labor Ministry had already ruled the walkout improper, while EsSalud says talks remain open after reaching partial accords with 9 of 16 unions on benefits such as uniforms and holiday packages.
• To sustain services, the insurer is hiring temporary staff, duplicating shifts, paying overtime, reprogramming missed appointments, expanding telemedicine, and deploying Hospital Perú teams, with 200 doctors reinforcing northern regions.
• Union federations have kept the indefinite action and submitted a complaint to the International Labour Organization in Lima seeking support for the right to strike.
• Service backlogs persist, with postponed consultations and surgeries; Arequipa doctors report roughly 600 pending trauma operations and waits of up to two years, and a local emergency department logged 100 road-traffic cases in August versus a usual 30.