New pay rates for health managers seen as ‘problematic’

New salary scales for senior managers appointed in future could pose difficulties for hospitals and health agencies in filling top-level positions, the union Impact has warned.

It said the new salaries, which will be lower than current rates in some cases, could force State-funded voluntary hospitals and agencies to look at other mechanisms to attract high-quality candidates.

The union said it was precisely this issue which was supposed to have been addressed by the pay review that produced the new rates.

Impact's incoming national secretary for its health and welfare division Eamonn Donnelly described the new pay rates for future chief executives of voluntary hospitals and health agencies as "problematic".

“ The jobs involved carry substantial responsibilities; there is no ‘size match’ with posts elsewhere in the public service .”

He said there were no equivalent positions elsewhere in the public service that carried the same level of responsibility and had similar pay scales attached to them.

“The new scales mean the employer is essentially hamstrung when trying to fill a post with an appropriate candidate.

“It further raises the possibility that voluntary hospitals would have to find ways around this to attract suitable candidates, which would mean perpetuating the culture that the pay review was supposed to help eliminate.”

Impact represents senior managers in a number of State-funded hospitals and voluntary health agencies.