A MAJOR row is looming between the nursing unions and health service managers about overtime payments. Talks on conflicting interpretations of existing overtime agreements are to take place tomorrow evening. These will follow the resumption of substantive negotiations on restructuring of the profession, which begin in the morning.
Another issue expected to feature at the evening talks is a unilateral agreement between the main nursing union, the Irish Nurses' Organisation, and private nursing agencies that nurses supplied to work shifts in specialist areas, such as operating theatres and intensive-care units, should be paid a 15 per cent premium. The Health Service Employers Agency has told hospitals not to pay the extra amount and this is aggravating staff shortages in some hospitals. Meanwhile, talks on restructuring are back on track, following the intervention of the Labour Court and the appointment as chairman yesterday of Mr Francis McCaffrey, an officer with the Labour Relations Commission. His appointment was welcomed by the chief executive of the HSEA, Mr Gerard Barry, and by the trade union leaders.
Mr Barry said he looked forward to negotiations getting under way "that will pave the way for an agreement with the nursing unions".
SIPTU nursing officer Mr Oliver MacDonagh said it was "imperative this time that we keep the talks on the rails and bring them to a speedy conclusion".
The general secretary of the INO, Mr Liam Doran, also welcomed Mr McCaffrey's appointment, but said his union was seeking parallel talks on a number of outstanding issues, including overtime payments, incremental credits for temporary nursing staff, acting up allowances for middle nurse managers and retrospection for senior nurse managers.
The issues most likely to cause serious conflict are those involving overtime and incremental credits. Mr Doran said some local managements were still not implementing agreed overtime rates, while the Eastern Health Board had announced it was giving retrospection to temporary nurses for incremental credits only from November 1998. The INO is seeking retrospection to February 1992.
Mr Barry said assurances had already been given to the unions that overtime agreements would be fully honoured.
However, health managers have made no secret of their fears that the unions may seek to institutionalise overtime now that it is being paid at higher rates. In some hospitals, management sources claimed that nurses have already sought first refusal on overtime before part-time locums are called in.
The HSEA is likely to oppose such requests on cost grounds, on the basis that it would be unfair to the lower-paid locums and that excessive hours would be damaging to the health of nurses.