Junior doctors vote overwhelmingly for strike action

Talks over the ongoing junior doctors' dispute at Waterford and Tullamore hospitals at the Labour Relations Commission have adjourned until Monday.

The meeting, between the Health Service Employers Agency and the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO), was held in an effort to resolve the dispute over rosters for non-consultant doctors (NCHDs)at the two hospitals.

Meanwhile, 97 per cent of the 2,600 junior doctors who were balloted by the IMO have voted for industrial action should the talks fail to bring a satisfactory resolution to the dispute. Voting ended this afternoon.

The IMO Director of Industrial Relations, Mr Fintan Hourihan, said this action could include strike action. "The IMO balloted all NCHD members on industrial action in order to protect NCHD training, ensure that national agreements endorsed by the Labour Court are implemented and to stop the introduction of unsafe work practices, which jeopardise the health, safety and career development of doctors and undermine patient care," he said.

Action at the hospitals has been suspending pending the outcome of the talks.

Industrial action by junior doctors led to hundreds of non-emergency operations and thousands of out-patient appointments being deferred over the past few weeks.

The dispute centres on new roster arrangements being introduced from July 1st by health boards. These cut the overall number of hours worked by junior doctors in accordance with the EU Working Time Directive.

However, junior doctors claim the new rosters make weekend and night work part of their normal shift, removing overtime payments for such shifts and restricting the time junior doctors have for training with consultants.