Section 39 pay talks adjourned until Friday with 'some progress' made

Pay talks at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC), between the Government and unions representing Section 39 workers, have been adjourned until Friday.

Unions say there was “some progress” in the talks before they ended around 9.30pm on Monday.

Afterwards, a statement was issued on behalf of the Ictu group of unions — the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, Siptu, and Fórsa.

It stated: “The talks aimed at resolving the long-running pay dispute in the community and voluntary sector have been adjourned at the request of the WRC until Friday morning.

“At the talks today, some progress was made. However, there are a number of outstanding issues that remain to be resolved.” 

Late last month, Section 39 organisations voted “overwhelmingly” to strike over their long-running pay dispute with the Government.

The results of a nationwide ballot returned a 96% vote in favour of taking industrial action in order to bring the issue to a head.

Monday’s crisis talks, which disabilities minister Norma Foley convened, at the Workplace Relations Commission were a last-ditch attempt to avert strike action.

Section 39 workers have been embroiled in industrial relations issues dating back years over the State’s failure to implement pay restoration.

While public sector healthcare workers who had their pay cut following the economic crash at the end of the 2010s have since had their remuneration restored, that same restoration was never applied to Section 39 workers.

This is despite the fact that, while they do not work directly for the HSE, they work for voluntary healthcare organisations that are funded by the HSE.

Last month’s ballot results followed the Government’s perceived reneging on an October 2023 deal to restore the pay and conditions of the Section 39 workers, with that deal itself resulting from a previous threat to strike.