Strike action the only choice we had, claim nurses

Rank and file nurses are seething that they have been forced into a walkout over their dispute with health chiefs.

As union leaders revealed plans to ratchet up their strike action with work stoppages nurses are growing increasingly angry with the Government.

Mary Conneely (44), a community nurse, from Skerries, Co Dublin, said they were backed into a corner by continued intransigence over improving pay and work conditions.

“We were left with no choice. What do you do when you play the game by the Government’s rules and they just turn you down,” she said.

“I think the politicians should be very afraid because we are now angry, very angry. And they will see how angry we are when it comes to election time.”

Since qualifying as a nurse in 1983 she has watched colleagues leave the profession in their thousands because of failed promises, she said.

“I was second year student nurse when it was agreed they would give us a 35-hour week. I’m 27 years nursing this year and I’m still working a 39-hour week.

“I have a degree like everybody else and I’m still working between four and six hours longer than all the other health professionals I work alongside.

“I feel very under-valued. I have seven years education under my belt and I feel it’s not worth a penny,” she said.

Mary said there was a “high-burnout rate” among nurses with 12,000 lost to other jobs in the last eight years.

“That’s a wipe out of two-thirds. They’ve just gone because there’s no point,” she said.

“Why would they be working long hours for less money? They are just going into other fields and they are leaving in their droves.”

She said unless the Government acts now restoring confidence to nurses then the future was bleak for health care in Ireland.

“I worry about the future. I worry about when I’m older, who’s going to be there to look after me when I get sick.

“We are not going to have our nurses and Irish nurses were always the best in the world. We still are but the value of nursing has been taken away from us.”

Paddy Creaven (49), a psychiatric nurse, from Ballinasloe, Co Galway, said the Government had taken advantage of nurses for too long.

“We have gone through the machinery and we’ve exhausted it now. I think politicians shouldn’t underestimate the anger there with nurses,” he said.

“The Labour Court recommended in 1981 that nurses should be the first to benefit from a 35-hour week.

“Of course, most of the managers have it since that, while we’re still stuck on the 39-hour week.”

He dismissed arguments that it was difficult for health chiefs to reduce so many work hours with 40,000 nurses in Ireland.

“It doesn’t matter to me whether I’m one of 40,000 or one of 100, but I shouldn’t be treated differently because I’m one of 40,000,” he said.

“Every time we look for better conditions we’ve been told times are bad, we can’t afford it, there’s 40,000 nurses or waiting times aren’t good.

“Nurses have always been told to wait until times get good. I think the times are as good as they get now.

“It’s now a degree profession and we demand to be treated the same as any other profession of the same educational standard.”

Paddy, a nurse for 30 years, said there is a huge sense of anger among his colleagues who believe the Government is trying to play them.

“There was a decision taken to play us along and get us to this week, until the election gets under way.

“But we are not going away and we will be making our votes count,” he said.

“We do not want to walk out, but we are saying to the Government we are absolutely committed and serious about this.

“You have another week before the stoppages but do not blame us when it happens.”