Midwives hold off on industrial action to engage in talks

MIDWIVES at a private hospital have suspended proposed industrial action to facilitate talks.

The Irish Nurses’ Organisation (INO) confirmed yesterday that over 60 midwives working at the Bon Secours Hospital in Cork would not begin a work-to-rule next Tuesday, or stage a protest outside the hospital on the day.

The decision to suspend industrial action was taken after hospital management agreed to engage with the INO in a conciliation conference, under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission, on a range of issues surrounding the hospital’s decision to close its obstetrics unit next March.

The INO midwives voted overwhelmingly last week in favour of industrial action in a row over the introduction of a unified maternity service in Cork.

They were planning to withdraw from non-midwifery tasks and from talks aimed at the introduction of the unified service.

Their dispute stems from a decision taken last November to discontinue obstetric services at the Bon Secours from March 1 next.

Its obstetric services will be transferred, along with those at St Finbarr’s Maternity Hospital and the Erinville, to the new €70 million Cork University Maternity Hospital (CUMH) due to open next year.

Management at the Bon Secours say because midwives’ jobs, pay and conditions are guaranteed at CUMH, no redundancies arise and therefore the issue should be dealt with under Transfer of Undertakings legislation.

However, the INO wants the issue addressed under the Redundancy Payments Act which would make a redundancy package available to midwives who do not wish to transfer to CUMH.

INO industrial relations officer, Michael Dineen, said while he welcomed the talks, it would take a major change in attitude from hospital management for progress to be made.

“They have agreed to engage with us on all aspects of the closure which hadn’t previously been the case,” he said.

The talks take place next Wednesday.