The Bishop of Limerick and Killaloe, Dr Edward Darling, has joined the SIPTU president, Mr Jimmy Somers, in calling on the Government to abandon its hardline position with the nurses. Mr Somers warned the Government against adopting "a macho stance", while Dr Darling said the nurses had "a right to rebel".
In a separate development Mr Paul Bell, a SIPTU official who represents non-nursing grades in the health services, such as porters, caterers and cleaners, said his executive would be considering their stance on the dispute on October 14th. They might well decide to serve strike notice in support of the nurses.
Addressing SIPTU's biennial conference yesterday, Dr Darling said: "There is a danger when a profession is seen as a vocation that those entering it are not interested in achieving a just and equitable wage. There is a danger also that people entering it will be taken for granted.
"That is not fair and I think our nurses have every right to rebel against that attitude."
Dr Darling said some commentators had suggested that Irish nurses were far better paid than their counterparts in England.
"That may well be, but if we improve conditions for nurses in Ireland will it not serve as an incentive to improve wages and conditions for nurses in England?"
In his own career as a clergyman, the Church of Ireland bishop said that he had seen at first hand the kind of work nurses did. He said he was full of admiration for the way they cared for the sick, often in conditions that were substandard.
It was an unusual departure for a senior cleric in giving his blessing to a trade union conference. He concluded, to warm applause: "I hope nurses will be successful in their quest for the justice and recognition they deserve."
Later Mr Somers called on the Government to show "a spirit of constructive engagement" in dealing with the nurses. He warned ministers not to mistake rigidity for strength.
"The present situation calls for flexibility and creativity, qualities which Bertie Ahern has demonstrated in the past," he said.
Anyone who had had dealings with the nurses in the past "will know that they are nobody's fools, nor are they militant extremists. They are, however, extremely angry and very determined to secure justice after two decades of neglect."
Referring to the current spate of political and financial scandals, Mr Somers said: "I think I'm fairly safe in saying that, regardless of whoever else may have deposits in the Cayman Islands, there are no nurses with accounts in the Ansbacher bank.
"So I am appealing to the Government not to put the nurses or their colleagues in the health service, or patients or the public at large through the torment of an unnecessary dispute. One way or another a settlement will have to be reached, so let's make it sooner rather than later."
It was possible that the Government would win the nurses' dispute by adopting "a macho stance". However, forcing nurses back to work could damage the morale of all those working in the health service, and the long-term results would be incalculable.
Later an emergency motion was passed supporting the nurses. Ms Eileen Hickey, a SIPTU delegate, said: "It is now time to stop these threats and attacks and address our grievances. When they do this is the Government's choice, be it before or after October 19th."