Nurses will reject offer, predicts union chief

Proposals aimed at resolving the dispute over nurses’ pay and working conditions will be rejected today, a union chief has predicted.

As over 40,000 nurses nationwide begin casting their votes, Psychiatric Nurses’ Association (PNA) chairman Des Kavanagh said the indication from members is that there will be a significant ’no’ response.

Nurses are been offered a 37.5-hour week to take effect from June next year while an independent commission will also be set up to examine how a 35-hour week could be achieved.

“The indications are that there will be a significant no vote,” Mr Kavanagh said.

“If this is what develops, we will be into a major escalation of industrial action in the first week of a new government coming to power.”

Voting by members of the Irish Nurses Organisation (INO) will close at 1pm today and the result is expected by early evening.

Results from the PNA balloting will not be known until June 5.

The breakthrough in the bitter dispute came after intervention earlier this month by the National Implementation Body (NIB)- the Government’s chief industrial relations trouble-shooters- which proposed reducing the working week.

The NIB suggested the 39-hour week will be cut to 37.5 by June next year and an independent commission will report on how further reductions can be made.

Mr Kavanagh added that if members vote to reject the proposals he would be advising that three-hour work stoppages should take place in every hospital every day.

The INO/PNA have been pushing the Government and HSE to give them a 10% pay rise while bringing the working week down to 35 hours.

During the work-to-rule members refused to carry out what they called non-nursing duties including answering phones, clerical and admin duties, attending meetings and opening community facilities.

Nurses and midwives claim they are working longer hours than many administration staff on equivalent grades.

Today’s ballots will be counted at a number of centres in Cork, Limerick, Galway and Dublin.