IHCA left out of new pay talks

The Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) has been left out of new talks with the Government. The

talks could result in the introduction of new higher pay rates for senior doctors to overcome recruitment difficulties.

Talks commenced earlier this month between health service management and the Irish Medical Organisation arising from the findings of a recent expert group. The discussions will resume later this week.

However, the IHCA was excluded from the process as it had refused to sign up to the Haddington Road agreement on public service pay and productivity.

Asked whether members of the IHCA would benefit from pay increases or other measures arising from the talks, a spokesman for the Department of Health said: "No comment."

The recent MacCraith report found that cuts to the pay of newly appointed hospital consultants and lack of recognition in pay scales of previously obtained experience were hampering attempts to recruit and retain senior doctors in the health service. It urged the Government to look again at pay levels for newly appointed hospital consultants.

In 2012 the Government introduced cuts of 30 per cent in pay rates for newly appointed specialist doctors in the health service.

Minister for Health James Reilly told the IHCA in a letter on May 16th that the Haddington Road agreement was now the medium for engagement on industrial relations matters in the public service.

Replying to the Minister this month Denis Evoy, president of the IHCA, said the organisation was not included in the talks that led to the signing of the deal. He said cuts in salary and the introduction of longer working hours proposed in the accord were applied to consultants by the Government using financial emergency legislation last July.

He said there was no logical reason why the IHCA had to sign up to the Haddington Road deal to participate in industrial relations talks that concerned its members.

“The high-level implementation plan in the MacCraith group’s second interim report recommends urgent industrial relations engagement with the staff associations representing consultants to address the barriers to consultant recruitment. The overwhelming evidence is that the unilateral disproportionate cut of 30 per cent in newly appointed consultant salaries, implemented by the State since October 2012, should be reversed as it is preventing the recruitment of the calibre and number of consultants required to deliver high-quality safe care to patients on a timely basis in acute hospital and mental health services.”