Nurses' unions to urge members to strike
Two nurses' unions today said they will ask their 40,000 members to consider strike action as they push for better pay and a 35-hour working week.
With the Labour Court rejecting their 10% pay rise claim, the Irish Nurses Organisation (INO) and Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) insisted they were being treated differently than other healthcare workers.
The Health Service Executive urged the nurses to reconsider using benchmarking when seeking pay increases.
Liam Doran, general secretary of the INO, claimed other healthcare workers were not forced to bargain within those restrictions.
"We see no reason why nurses and midwives should not be allowed to have issues of concern treated in a similar manner," he said.
"Both organisations have consistently said that progress must be made on our claim for a 35-hour week, already enjoyed by all other health professionals, management and administrative grades."
Mr Doran said the pay anomaly which sees a graduate nurse wait 21 years before earning more than a social worker reporting to her/him must also be addressed.
He added: "We have not changed our position on these key issues."
Des Kavanagh, PNA general secretary, said: "The 40,000 nurses and midwives, represented by both our unions, have diligently and patiently sought to have these issues adequately addressed through procedure.
"The court's recommendations, in the light of the treatment of other grades, will obviously have nurses and midwives thinking they are once again being treated in a second class fashion. This is not acceptable."
The INO and PNA will meet next week at a pay rally in Dublin City University to agree on a plan of action. All options remain open, they said.
Brendan Mulligan of the HSE Employers Agency said: "We accept the court's recommendation and would urge the INO and PNA to endorse the court's position regarding their participation in benchmarking.
"We would also agree with the court's recommendation for the two unions to accept new Social Partnership Agreement - Towards 2016."
The unions also agreed to immediately lodge a cost of living claim directly on health employers.
This claim will be for 3% from December 2006 and will allow for the same level of workplace change that is being required of all other health service staff in the relevant period.
Mr Doran concluded: "All roads, for the activists of both unions, now lead to the Helix Theatre, on Wednesday, November 22, where a plan of action for the next steps in our campaign, will be presented to the representatives of our 40,000 members."
