Wexford ambulance staff to take industrial action

Staff at three ambulance stations in Co Wexford announced this evening that they will begin industrial action tomorrow.

Staff at three ambulance stations in Co Wexford announced this evening that they will begin industrial action tomorrow.

The staff, at Gorey, Enniscorthy and New Ross, are in dispute with the South Eastern Health Board on the issue of eliminating on-call in the ambulance Ssations.

The SEHB is seeking to reduce on-call duties from 90 to 32 hours a fortnight in the near future and eliminating the system completely before the end of the year.

The SEHB claims their proposal will improved services in the affected areas by having rostered staff on a round-the-clock basis rather than on-call staff overnight.

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Talks over the past number of months between SIPTU and the SEHB, under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission, have failed to reach agreement in the dispute.

"It is regrettable that the staff side found this unacceptable and refused to refer this matter to the Labour Court for determination," the SEHB said in a statement. "We again call on SIPTU to refer this matter, in the interests of patient care, to the Labour Court."