SENIOR HSE management in the west are expected to deliver their plans today to “maximise” the number of job losses among temporary staff in the area.
In response to a projected overspend of €90 million this year in the HSE West area, stretching from Donegal to Limerick, regional director for operations in the west, John Hennessy, has demanded his health managers draw up plans for job losses across the sector for today’s meeting.
The Impact trade union said at the weekend that the move would affect up to 300 temporary contract healthcare workers in the midwest alone, where the HSE is facing a projected overspend of €35 million this year.
In an internal memo, dated Wednesday, July 21st, Mr Hennessy states “what’s very clear to all of us is that we face a major challenge between now and year-end to achieve the required budget breakeven out-turn”.
In his memo to health managers across the west, Mr Hennessy states: “A key component of our breakeven plan will be a substantial reduction in temporary staff.” He states that he has attached a detailed profile of existing temporary staff for area west “which you can filter for your particular area of responsibility”.
He goes on: “With immediate effect, I wish you to put an action plan in place to maximise the reduction in your temporary staff numbers in order to achieve your breakeven plan by year-end. Any exception to this directive within your area of responsibility will be subject to my approval following a business case submission to Francis Rogers, assistant national director of HR.” Mr Hennessy said the matter would be a key agenda item at the area west management team meeting today.
The HSE met Impact last week to discuss its plans to cut costs in the midwest. At this meeting, plans to reduce temporary staff were outlined. Impact’s assistant general secretary Andy Pike confirmed that the HSE had tabled the closure of the orthopaedic operating theatre and an orthopaedic ward at Croom Orthopaedic hospital, as well as the cutting of 25 inpatient beds at Ennis General and Nenagh General hospitals.
Mr Pike said the cost-cutting also included a ward closure at St Joseph’s Hospital in Ennis and a ward closure at the Mid-Western Regional Hospital, Limerick.
Mr Pike said: “Impact members locally are both stunned and deeply angered by the scale of the proposed cuts and the prospect of further cuts to come. There is anger and concern at the implications of these cuts for service users, patients and staff. The chronic underfunding of the health services and the swingeing budget cuts mean that front-line services will be reduced, waiting lists will go up and staff will be dismissed.”
Mr Pike confirmed that Impact had referred the issue of the review of temporary contracts to the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) “for urgent conciliation”.
“We informed the HSE that if it proceeded with the termination of contracts we would be in a serious industrial dispute very quickly,” he said.
