HOPES of averting a national strike by the State's 26,000 nurses improved significantly early today a settlement talks entered their final phase.
In a last minute effort to break the deadlock, the chief executive of the Labour Relations Commission, Mr Kieran Mulvey, joined the negotiators yesterday in the search for a peace formula.
The gap between the two sides on the crucial issue of pay was reported to be narrowing, although considerable work remained to done as negotiations continued early today.
If the talks fail the main Dublin hospitals will be the first affected by a series of rolling two day strikes. Such a strike would throw down a challenge to the Government's pay policy that it is anxious to avoid.
The unions originally intended to take industrial action earlier this month, but agreed to a deferral after the intervention of Mr Mulvey three weeks ago. They did so on condition that the latest round of negotiations would be concluded by yesterday.
While it looked like the midnight deadline would be exceeded last night, it was equally unlikely that either side would seek further talks if there is no breakthrough by the early hours of this morning.
The central issue is pay and it has dominated discussions over the past two days. Slight progress was reported at the end of 15 hours of talks at 2 a.m. yesterday. Both sides returned to the negotiating table at 10 a.m. and were still in discussions at 10 p.m.
The unions are understood to be maintaining their position that the top of the salary scale for staff nurses with nine years' service must be above £20,000 a year. It now seems unlikely that they will achieve their target figure of £20,500. During the last round of talks management offered £19,200 after 15 years' service. Management representatives also wanted to introduce lower rates of pay for new entrants.
This offer was rejected by more than 99 per cent of nurses balloted in the four unions involved, the Irish Nurses' Organisation, SIPTU, IMPACT and the Psychiatric Nurses' Association of Ireland. The size of the majority against the offer makes it impossible for the union negotiators to go back to their members without a substantially better offer.
The last offer would cost £20 million. The Government is understood to have approved a substantial increase to around £35 million, which should make it possible for the negotiators to arrive at a package close to the unions' target.
The current top of the staff nurse scale is £17,485, which is to increase to £18,297 by June 1997 under the Programme for Competitiveness and Work. The maximum salary a nurse can earn, as director of nursing services in a large hospital, is £27,815.
The low differential for nursing managers, the lack of reward for extra qualifications, early retirement and the high level of nurses who are in temporary posts, around 15 per cent of the total, are also major grievances. However, with 17,000 nurses in the staff nurse grade, it is on the resolution of this issue that the success or failure of the talks will hinge.
The PCW provides for extra payments to public sector workers willing to agree to restructuring of their work. It is under this clause that the unions are seeking to boost pay rates. In return they will agree to new career structures, greater flexibility and cooperation with pilot schemes to improve the overall efficiency of the health services.
The teaching unions are currently balloting on a restructuring deal that is worth around £67 million to their 40,000 members. The Government has told health management negotiators they can offer parity to the nurses, but the career grades of the two professions are too dissimilar for this to be of much practical guidance in crafting a pay deal.