Nurses’ union votes in favour of strike

THE Irish Nurses Organisation last night became the latest public service trade union to vote in favour of a 24-hour strike on November 24 in protest at Government plans to cut jobs and pay in the December budget.

The decision by the country’s 40,000 nurses to ballot 85% in favour of a national strike follows a similar percentage in favour among IMPACT trade union’s 50,000 members in the public service at the end of last month.

Other unions in the sector are also being balloted, with the outcome of their deliberations expected soon.

If all vote in favour, schools, hospitals and a host of other public services will stop for 24 hours on November 24.

INO general secretary Liam Doran said the strength of his members’ ballot confirmed the depth of anger and concern among nurses and midwives with regard to the threat of further cuts to their pay and conditions.

Talks between the Government and public service unions on how the Government can achieve €1.3 billion in cuts to the public service pay bill will continue in Dublin later today.

Over the weekend, the Taoiseach made it clear that while his Government was determined to reform the public service and reduce its staffing level, that was a medium-term goal and the immediate priority was on saving the €1.3bn.

Yesterday, Garda Representative Association president Michael O’Boyce said the Government had told his organisation it wants to save €90 million of that amount from the pockets of gardaí but that it was willing to listen to alternatives. However, he said, the Government refused the GRA’s offer to cut overtime.

He said while discussions between the two sides continued “it is very difficult to achieve anything because it seems to us that they do not seem interested in any of the alternatives”.

Mr O’Boyce said this year €80m would be spent on Garda overtime and he said the refusal by the Government to consider cutting it was a sign it realised there were not enough gardaí.