Tomorrow's strike by non-consultant hospital doctors has been averted following over 13 hours of talks at the Labour Relations Commission last night. Under the settlement formula, NCHDs are to be paid overtime rates worth approximately double the existing rates and talks on procedures to eliminate excessive working hours are to be concluded by June 16th.
When talks concluded at 1.30 a.m the chief executive of the LRC, Mr Kieran Mulvey, said he was happy a national health service strike had been avoided. "We will be working over the next four weeks to reach a settlement in what has proven a long and arduous process."
The chief executive of the Health Service Employers' Agency, Mr Gerard Barry, said he was pleased the strike had been called off. "We believe this marks the beginning of a new chapter in relations with the NCHDs."
However, the Irish Medical Organisation was less enthusiastic about the deal. Its director of industrial relations, Mr Fintan Hourihan, said NCHDs had accepted the proposals "reluctantly in the patients' interests". He welcomed the new overtime rates as a significant improvement for members but added, "There is still a long way to go."
Under the terms of the agreement NCHDs will be paid time-and-a-quarter for every hour they work over the basic 39 hour week, up to a limit of 54 hours. They will be paid time-and-a-half for every hour over 54 hours.
In return the IMO has agreed the function of rostering doctors "must become a function of hospital management. To this end a senior manager will be appointed in each health agency to facilitate and monitor this process."
The health manager can be a consultant, a general manager of a human resources manager. The aim is to ensure NCHDs do not work longer than the 65 hours envisaged in the 1997 contract.
Management was also anxious the new overtime rates would not become "a blank cheque" for NCHDs. However, IMO representatives said last night that their members' main priority was to reduce working hours.
By concluding talks on June 16th both sides aim to have new structures in place before the renewal of contracts for NCHDs on July 1st.