Nurses to seek pay increase of €6,000

TRADE UNIONS are today expected to take a pay claim for about 30,000 nurses back to the Labour Court.

The Irish Nurses Organisation (INO) and the Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) are seeking increases of about €6,000 per year for staff nurses in hospitals and other nursing personnel to bring their pay into line with therapists.

Nurses had previously been advised by the Labour Court and the National Implementation Body that they should seek to have their pay claim addressed through the public service benchmarking process.

However in its report earlier this year, the benchmarking body said that the claim by nurses for pay parity with therapy grades was not consistent with its terms of reference.

The nursing unions are now bringing the claim back to the Labour Court.

They are expected to tell the Labour Court they are prepared to discuss the expanded role of the nurse as part of a consideration of the pay claim.

Health service management has already signalled in the national pay talks that it wants nurses to take on some roles traditionally carried out by doctors.

Management also wants nurses to relinquish some of their traditional duties to other staff.

The Labour Court will hold an "ad hoc" hearing today in a bid to clarify various issues relating to the pay claim by nurses.

The court has asked for submissions from both sides.

Nurses have warned of possible industrial action in the event of their pay claim not being addressed.

Under a separate agreement reached at the end of industrial action last year, the working week for nurses is scheduled to be reduced to 37.5 hours by the beginning of June.

Discussions on the implementation of this reduction in hours, which some observers have said would equate to a 4 per cent pay rise, are continuing.

The Government has insisted reduced hours can only come about on a cost-neutral basis and without leading to a diminution of services for patients.