Nurses' union to press ahead with graduate-scheme boycott campaign

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has said it is determined to continue its boycott of a new nursing graduate scheme.

The HSE is looking to recruit 1,000 new nurses on a salary level which is 20% lower than their peers.

Yesterday, the Health Minister James Reilly described the continued opposition to the scheme as "regrettable".

Liam Doran, general secretary of the INMO, believes the Minister is misleading the public.

"The simple fact is that, contrary to what's being spun, to employ the thousand graduates, the health service is going to have to sack a thousand experienced nurses who are providing their services through agency or temporary contracts because they can't access permanent posts," he said.

"So when the Minister speaks about providing an opportunity for the thousand young graduates, he's absolutely silent about the impact of this upon a thousand experienced nurses."