Health and Community group workers have voted to strike from next month in response to a long standing pay dispute.
The ICTU group of unions representing health and community workers, employed in community and voluntary sector agencies funded by the HSE and other state agencies, have announced that indefinite strike action, in several selected employments nationwide, is to commence from Tuesday, October 17.
The union group, led by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), said the strike action will involve thousands of health and community workers in a variety of grades and in multiple locations, bringing services to a halt.
The decision to strike follows ballots carried out by Fórsa, the INMO and SIPTU.
All three unions said ballot returns showed a high level of participation in the ballot, and overwhelming support for industrial action, up to and including strikes.
ICTU general secretary Owen Reidy said the strike action is a consequence of the failure of the Government to address a serious and growing problem with how the agencies are funded, and a recruitment and retention crisis in vital services.
“Workers in the sector now have chosen to take action because the State, as the chief funding body for these services, has failed to grasp the seriousness of the staffing crisis in this sector,” he said.
Among the groups which will see union workers going on strike is Ability West, Irish Wheelchair Association, DePaul Ireland, Family Resource Centres, and the Western Care Association.
The ballot for industrial action took place following the breakdown of WRC talks in July and follows years of pay disparity between these workers and their counterparts employed directly by the state.
Fórsa Health and Welfare official Ashley Connolly added, “This is the action of last resort, and it has been a difficult decision for these workers, but they’ve been left with no more options.”
“The Government has been dragging its feet on the issue for years, while making conciliatory noises to health workers who urgently need pay improvements.”
“Their colleagues are walking out the door for better terms elsewhere, and waiting lists for the services these agencies offer continue to grow as a result.”
INMO official Albert Murphy said: “Nurses in the community and voluntary sector provide essential services to some of the most vulnerable people in society.”
“They have not been afforded the same level of pay increases as their colleagues in the HSE, which is exacerbating a recruitment and retention crisis in the sector.”
“Nurses in the sector are now facing another winter with rising household costs, yet their salaries remain stagnant.”
The full list of affected organisations is:
• Ardeen Cheshire Ireland
• Ability West
• Cheshire Ireland
• Cheshire Dublin
• Cheshire Home Newcastle West
• Co-action West Cork
• Cobh Hospital
• Daughters Of Charity Child and Family Service
• DePaul Ireland
• Don Bosco Care
• Enable Ireland (nationwide, including Cork, Tralee, East Coast and Midwest regions)
• Family Resource Centres
• Irish Wheelchair Association
• Kerry Parents and Friends
• St. Catherines Association Ltd
• St. Josephs Foundation
• St. Lukes Nursing Home
• Western Care Association
