Revised pay proposals won’t attract ‘high calibre’ medics

The Irish Hospitals Consultants Association has claimed revised HSE pay proposals for its members will fail to attract the number of “high calibre” consultants that are urgently needed.

The association accused the HSE of offering “discriminatory” employment terms for new entrant consultants despite the urgent need for them among patients who, it said, are already enduring unacceptable delays and waiting lists.

Dr Gerard Crotty, IHCA president, said there was no credible support for the proposals which, he said, represent a 20% salary cut for new entrants on a like-for-like basis after four years in the post and which fail to deliver parity even after nine years.