The Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) has criticised the Minister for Finance over reports today that he has decided to defer the establishment of a review body to assess salary levels for senior public servants, including hospital consultants.
Representatives of the IMO's consultative committee said the decision, reported in today's Irish Times, had been taken without any discussion or consultation with the doctors and represented "a second serious assault in six months" on the contract of employment for hospital consultants.
"In February of this year the Department of Health and Children breached the Consultant Contract by introducing a professional indemnity scheme despite the opposition of the Irish Medical Organisation and a contractual provision requiring the agreement of the IMO to such changes," said Mr Sean Tierney of the committee.
"Now the Minister for Finance has apparently decided to defer for an unspecified period a pay review which is contractually provided for in the Consultants' Common Contract and whose terms of reference require the Review Body to meet every four years," he added.
"Consultants were denied a full increase in the last pay review and are now being told they have to wait seven years before their salaries will be reviewed independently again."
Mr Tierney said the Departments of Finance and Health and Children had apparently decided to "tear up the rule book" on industrial relations and had "fatally damaged" the prospect of negotiations on consultants' contracts resuming in the near future.
The IMO represents 650 consultants.