Nurses have deferred their planned strike action, due to start on Monday, after the National Implementation Body was called in to hold talks in a bid to resolve the dispute.
Talks will begin at Government building next Monday with a time-limit of March 30th, the Government and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) said in a statement.
Nurses immediately announced they would defer their work-to-rule plan, but warned they would escalate industrial action from April 2nd if there was no progress at the talks.
The nurses served strike notice several weeks ago and have been engaged in a number of protests over pay and conditions.
Some 40,000 members of the Irish Nurses Organisation and the Psychiatric Nurses Association were due to begin a nationwide work-to-rule from Monday.
The nursing unions are seeking a 35-hour week, elimination of a pay anomaly and progress on other priority issues for over 40,000 nurses and midwives affiliated with the unions.
The talks were announced following contact between representatives of the Government and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu).
In a joint statement, the Government and Ictu said it had been agreed that an "intensive, timebound process of engagement" would be put in place under the aegis of the NIB.
The talks will address the issues underpinning the current dispute, taking account of the relevant Labour Court recommendations, the statement said.
"This initiative has been accepted by the Irish Nurses Organisation and the Psychiatric Nurses Association, and by Health Service employers. It is agreed that the process, which will involve senior representatives of both sides, will commence on 12th March, 2007, and last until 30th March, 2007, at the latest, and that in the meantime there will be no industrial action."
"At the end of the three-week period, or earlier if negotiations are completed, a detailed position statement will be prepared and presented to both sides for their consideration," the statement concluded.
In a statement, the two unions said they had decided to defer commencement of industrial action following agreement to commence the three weeks of intensive negotiations with health service employers.
A joint meeting of the executive council and officer board, of the INO and PNA, will take place at 1100am on Monday, March 26th in order to assess progress at the talks.
INO general secretary Liam Doran said: "This intensive set of negotiations, to discuss all of the issues of priority to nurses and midwives, is what we have been seeking for many months. It is now imperative that we commence constructive dialogue that will facilitate progress on all of the issues that are the subject of the current dispute."
Des Kavanagh, PNA general secretary said: "If sufficient progress is not being made then our joint Executive meeting on March 26 thwill have no choice but to announce the commencement of an escalated series of actions from Monday, April 2 nd.
Minister for Health Mary Harney welcomed the engagement of the National Implementation Body to address issues in the dispute.
"I think the involvement of Congress and the NIB offers the best prospect of finding a satisfactory solution and I guarantee that my Department and the HSE will engage fully and positively in the process," Ms Harney said in a statement.
The Minister said the Government wants to see nurses fully involved in benchmarking and the broader partnership arrangement as a means to finding solutions to their industrial relations issues.
"I am a strong supporter of empowering nurses to deliver better services for patients. We have great scope for changed work practices and working arrangements throughout the health sector which would result in more efficient and responsive services for patients as well as bringing benefits for staff."
The State's largest union, Siptu, also welcomed today's announcement. Union President Jack O'Connor said: "We have been calling for an initiative of this kind for some time. It is regrettable that it has taken so long to bring it about, but it is better late than never."