Health unions to begin lunchtime protests as ballots open

INMO general secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha said concern at 'unsafe staffing' levels had left them with no other option, as union is to ballot for industrial action. Picture: Sam Boal/RollingNews.ie

Patients could face another winter of discontent as health unions begin lunchtime protests next week as part of a long-running staffing dispute with the HSE.

Fórsa and the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation will also open balloting for industrial action as frustration grows over unfilled posts in the wake of a now-lifted hiring freeze.

Multi-union protests will begin from October 3. Fórsa said “thousands of frontline positions had been suppressed” and not back-filled after the freeze ended.

Ashley Connolly of Fórsa health and welfare division said patients were taking the brunt of this.

“While the HSE may maintain that the number of employees across the organisation has never been higher, the reality is that, against the backdrop of increased services and higher demands from an ageing demographic with more complex needs, the HSE remains under-resourced,” she said.

A Fórsa survey with 4,000 responses showed 88% with vacancies in their departments since December 2023. Some 42% said the number of vacancies had increased in that time.

Fórsa official Linda Kelly said staff were demoralised, especially as “profligate spending on external management consultants” continued. 

INMO general secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha said concern at “unsafe staffing” levels had left them with no other option.

“Over 2,000 much-needed nursing and midwifery posts have now been effectively abolished by the HSE,” she said.

This means the safety of our members at work is severely compromised and their ability to provide safe, appropriate and timely care is not possible. 

“For too long the goodwill of nurses and midwives has been taken for granted. It's time to call a halt and together with our colleagues in other trade unions exercise our rights to say, ‘This is a step too far, and we will not tolerate it’,” she added.