More than 6,500 vacant HSE posts despite funds being available

A HSE ban on recruitment had been in place between October 2023 and July 2024. However since this was lifted, unions have raised concerns that normal recruitment patterns have not resumed. File picture

More than 6,500 HSE jobs are vacant despite funding being available for these roles as it struggles to find the right people, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) group of healthcare unions warned on Friday. 

In the Midwest region alone, the HSE was only able to fill 9% of maternity leave vacancies across all types of jobs, the unions were told.

Concern has been growing about the HSE’s ability to recruit as it tries to meet rapidly growing patient demand.

Nursing and midwifery are particularly badly hit in some regions.

In the Midwest, covering Limerick, Clare, and north Tipperary, just 4% of the vacant posts in that region have been backfilled, the unions were told.

The unions met the HSE on Friday to discuss their concerns, but said they not satisfied with the information shared with them.

This follows a review of a staffing agreement reached in March. The review was earlier than scheduled due to the growing worries within healthcare staff about these vacancies.

A spokesperson for the unions said: “The HSE were unable to provide substantial details regarding recruitment and the filling of maternity leave.

In one HSE health area, only 9% of maternity leave cover has been filled. This is unacceptable to us as a group of unions.

The union group includes the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, Fórsa, and Siptu.

It said meetings with the HSE will take place again over the next two weeks. This will be followed by a formal re-engagement at the Workplace Relations Commission on November 10.

A HSE ban on recruitment had been in place between October 2023 and July 2024. 

However since this was lifted, unions have raised concerns that normal recruitment patterns have not resumed.