THE Labour Court is expected to appoint a chairperson for the negotiations on nurses' pay when it meets both sides this morning. The court intervened in the dispute yesterday after it appeared as if the main union, the Irish Nurses' Organisation, was about to consider a strike ballot of its members in the public health sector.
Both sides are likely to accept an independent chair, if only because mutual levels of trust are at a very low ebb. But the court may find it more difficult to establish a mutually agreed basis for proceeding with the negotiations.
The INO surprised the Health Service Employers' Association representatives at Thursday's talks, and probably some of the other nursing unions as well, when it insisted that pay scales be discussed in conjunction with exploratory talks on new structures for clinical nurse managers (CNMs). This is the grade due to replace ward sisters in the new system.
Last night the chief executive of the HSEA, Mr Gerard Barry, said that the unions had been given "an absolute assurance" of a composite set of pay proposals by the end of the first phase of the negotiations on March 29th. "That would have given a further month for negotiations before returning to the Labour Court by its deadline of May 1st."
He said it was "not unreasonable to have discussions on structures initially to get some bearings. Then we can put a price tag on the changes."
INO general secretary Mr Liam Doran was unapologetic for insisting that pay be on the agenda from the beginning of the discussions. "We took it as read that the totality of issues for each grade would be discussed as they arose," he said. The INO had offered to extend talks on the CNM grade over three days, instead of the scheduled two, in order to take the pay element into account.
The union accepted the need for change, including the items already identified in the HSEA proposals, he said, "and we now want the pay offer tabled". Mr Doran accused management of trying to get "all they can under their belt" in productivity before putting money on the table.
It was "inherent in the process outlined by the Labour Court, and we bought into it, that side by side with negotiations on change would be negotiations on the price", he said.
It will be up to the Labour Court today to clarify just how negotiations should proceed.
One exacerbating factor has been the failure of some local health managers to implement new agreements on overtime rates agreed for nurses. In at least three health boards this has already created industrial relations problems.
SIPTU nursing official Mr Oliver MacDonagh said his union had to threaten industrial action in the Western Health Board before the overtime agreement was implemented there. There had also been delays introducing a new incremental credit system for temporary nursing staff.
Mr Barry conceded there had been delays introducing overtime rates, but he said that he had given a written assurance that these rates would be paid.