The Government Press Secretary, Mr Joe Lennon, has denied that the Cabinet reversed a decision of September 16th by agreeing to talks with the nursing unions.
He said yesterday that this was to "totally misread" the Government position. The Cabinet had never decided to boycott the Labour Court or the Labour Relations Commission over the issue of nurses' pay. It had simply decided that it "was not going of its own volition to the Labour Court". He added: "We will now be going in and arguing our case."
Mr Lennon also denied any split in the Government on the issue of nurses' pay. When the Taoiseach attended the Cabinet on Monday, September 21st, after his return from China, he had agreed with the line adopted at the previous meeting.
"There was no reversal of the Government decision. It was always our intention to go to the court or commission, if asked", Mr Lennon said. "If we go, we will be saying in the commission and the court that we can only deal with pay aspects (of the Commission on Nursing) within the parameters set down by the Taoiseach last July."
SIPTU's nursing official, Mr Oliver McDonagh, said yesterday that the unions expected serious negotiations in the Labour Court on their outstanding pay claim.
The general secretary of the Irish Nurses' Organisation, Mr Liam Doran, said that he welcomed the decision of the Government to allow the Health Service Employers' Association to meet the unions in the Labour Court. He believed that the unions would prove their case for improved pay. It would then be up to the Government to demonstrate its good faith.
It is generally felt that progress is possible on the issue of improved qualification allowances for nurses, but it is hard to see how restructuring proposals in the report of the Commission on Nursing can be implemented without new pay structures. A thornier issue is an additional long-service increment for staff nurses, which would probably lead to follow-on claims from other groups of public service workers.