Calls are being made in Clare for increased incentives for young nurses, as INMO members consider a new pay deal.
It follows the suspension of planned strike action by union members this week, following a recommendation from the Labour Court.
Hospital appointments are going ahead and high levels of overcrowding have been reported at the region’s main hospital today, as Clare FM’s Fiona McGarry reports:
The INMO Executive Council will hold a full briefing on the pay deal tomorrow, before deciding when to ballot their members.
It suggests a new grade with higher pay, ranging between 2.5 and 7 per cent.
Other public sector unions are also examining the agreement.
Forsa, the country’s largest public sector union, says it’s going to study tit to see what implications it could have for other public service workers.
Law Professor at Maynooth University, Michael Doherty says other unions could come knocking on the governments door.
The HSE says surgeries and outpatient clinics are going ahead today following the suspension of the strikes, but the emergency department at University Hospital Limerick is extremely busy.
The latest INMO figures show 60 patients have were left waiting for beds at University Hospital Limerick, 35 of those on trolleys in the ED.
The overall figures is 22 more than the next busiest hospital.
Patients are reminded that the Local Injuries Unit at Ennis General is open.
Meanwhile, calls are now being made locally for incentives to be put in place to attract and retain young nurses.
Barefield Independent Councillor Ann Norton, who’s a member of the HSE’s Regional Health Forum West, has welcomed progress in the dispute, saying she hopes that nurses will be happy to vote in favour of the deal.
She believes there are opportunities to to strengthen the workforce now.
