Hospital consultants want pay increases of up to €50,000
The consultants, who are arguing for a pay increases of up to €50,000, claim it is due to them because of the unprecedented level of change that has occurred in the health services in recent years.
They say consultants at the upper end of the pay scale should get slightly in excess of the current salary of a High Court judge and secretary general of a government department.
The Irish Medical Organisation, which represents 650 of the country’s 1,600 consultants, was in the Labour Court earlier this month to push for the salary hike.
The court’s recommendation is expected later this week.
Under the Buckley review of salaries for top public servants, published in September 2000, a 10% interim award was paid to consultants on the basis talks on productivity/common contracts would take place the following year.
IMP’s director of industrial relations Fintan Hourihan, said they were pushing for a new pay rise because those direct talks had not taken place.
The interim increase brought the salary of a category two consultant from €97,160 to €107,661 (depending on area worked) and a category one consultant from €108,804 to €120,612.
The consultants are claiming their workload has been increasing in recent years. Acute hospital activity is up by 17% and day care activity is increasing by 10% every year.
In their Labour Court submission the IMO pointed to the 1979 O’Hanlon report that recommended consultants’ salaries be regarded as a high figure in comparison to other public sector salaries.
