Psychiatric nurses working in the community are to receive a significant pay increase as a result of a Labour Court recommendation in their favour.
The court upheld a claim by the Psychiatric Nurses' Association (PNA) that its members were entitled to enhanced community allowance payments.
The allowance, currently worth €3,616 a year, was introduced more than a decade ago to compensate nurses moving to community-based posts for a loss of premium shift payments.
It is expected to increase to about €4,400 initially and just over €5,000 when the benchmarking rises are paid in full, as a result of the court's decision.
About 800 members of the PNA, as well as psychiatric nurses in other unions, will benefit from the court's recommendation.
The PNA's claim was based on the fact that general pay rises had been applied to the allowance, but special increases such as the benchmarking awards had not.
As a result of this, the union argued, the value of the allowance as a percentage of basic pay had declined.
The increase was refused, however, by the Health Service Employers Agency, which said the claim was cost-increasing and therefore ruled out by national partnership agreements.
It said special increases did not normally apply to allowances unless there was specific agreement to the contrary.
The court said that having considered all the circumstances of the case, its view was that the union's case was reasonable and should be conceded.
Union-management talks are to take place shortly to work out the details of the increase and how it should be applied.
Mr Des Kavanagh, general secretary of the PNA, said the union was delighted with the recommendation, as it maintained the value of the community allowance in real terms.
This was very important to psychiatric nurses, as increasing numbers of them were transferring to community-based work.
