Union warns those who reject pay deal may face isolation

The largest nursing union in the country has warned other unions that it will be “difficult” for them to collectively reject the terms of the Haddington Road agreement and said those that do reject the deal face “isolation”.

Liam Doran, the general secretary of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, said the terms of agreement are grade-, union-, and management-specific and do not require a collective acceptance by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions.

“This would mean that if the members of any individual union reject these proposals then the terms of the [Government’s imposed] legislation will be applied, specifically, to that grade while other grades, whose unions accept the proposals, would have a collective agreement,” he said.