Cecilia Keaveney
Question:125 Cecilia Keaveney asked the Minister for Health the costs which would be involved in paying the 424 provincial ambulance drivers as an emergency service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20349/96]
Written Answers. - Ambulance Service.
Cecilia Keaveney
Question:129 Cecilia Keaveney asked the Minister for Health whether current rates of pay for ambulance drivers reflect fairly their levels of training, responsibility and stress, when responding to either routine or emergency calls; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20353/96]
Limerick East): I propose to take Questions Nos. 125 and 129 together.
There are no standard rates of pay for "emergency services", therefore it is not possible to cost such a proposal. Public sector pay including that of ambulance personnel is determined through the normal industrial relations procedures. Under these procedures each group is entitled to lodge claims in respect of pay and conditions.
The claim lodged by SIPTU on behalf of ambulance personnel and controllers in provincial locations in 1993 sought parity of basic pay with their counterpart grades in the Dublin ambulance service where agreement had already been reached. In February 1994 during the pay talks which formed part of theProgramme for Competitiveness and Work discussions, agreement was reached to restore basic pay parity with Dublin, payment conditional on agreement to a range of productivity/efficiency measures, with referral for binding third party decision in the event of disagreement on any of the proposed measures.
As outlined to the Deputy in previous replies on 26 September and 17 October 1996, negotiations are ongoing to try to reach agreement on a number of productivity/flexibility measures.
Cecilia Keaveney
Question:126 Cecilia Keaveney asked the Minister for Health his views on whether 94 pence per hour is a rate suitable for ambulance drivers on call; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20350/96]
Cecilia Keaveney
Question:127 Cecilia Keaveney asked the Minister for Health the current rate for on-call payments available to the emergency services. [20351/96]
Limerick East): I propose to take Questions Nos. 126 and 127 together.
The rate of pay for on-call for ambulance personnel is based on the hourly rate. A payment of 1/6th of the flat hourly rate is paid in respect of each hour on-call. At 1 October 1996 this equates to 97 pence per hour for those drivers on the maximum of the scale. On-call is defined as time when the employee is required to maintain himself fit and ready for duty and to be available to accept and respond immediately to a call to attend for duty. When a driver is then called to duty he is paid the appropriate overtime rates for all work performed outside of the rostered working week.
The on-call rate is one element of a remuneration package for emergency work. In relation to other health service employees providing emergency cover a diversity of arrangements apply. Therefore any one element of such a package cannot be directly compared between different groups.
Cecilia Keaveney
Question:128 Cecilia Keaveney asked the Minister for Health whether anomalies exist between the status of metropolitan and provincial ambulance drivers in respect of the rates of pay and allowances and in the calculation of overtime; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20352/96]
Limerick East): The remuneration packages of ambulance personnel in the provinces and the Dublin metropolitan area are negotiated separately by each group. Prior to 1982 ambulance drivers in the provinces had a separate and distinct history of pay determination. In 1982 arising from a Labour Court hearing [LCR6914] the concession of basic pay parity was recommended by the court. This was implemented with effect from 1 January 1983.
These two groups have continued to negotiate their remuneration package separately and in 1993 the Dublin group reached agreement on a new remuneration package for drivers and attendants in the Eastern Health Board.
In February 1994 during the pay talks which formed part of theProgramme for Competitiveness and Work discussions, agreement was reached to restore basic pay parity with Dublin in response to the unions claim on behalf of ambulance personnel and controllers in provincial locations. Subject to the successful conclusion of the current set of negotiations on the productivity-flexibility elements on which the concession is conditional, parity of basic pay between the two groups will be restored.
The question of the application of certain allowances and other concessions negotiated locally with the Dublin group were not part of this claim. Differences do exist in relation to the payment of a travel allowance to the Dublin group. The travel allowance emerged originally from its introduction in the local authority Dublin metropolitan area and was subsequently extended to the Eastern Health Board (Dublin area).
This and other allowances peculiar to the Dublin metropolitan area have been the subject of a number of Labour Court cases for the non-nursing group of employees as a whole. Consistently, the court have recommended that allowances such as these, should not be extended to employees working outside the Dublin area. Particular emphasis has been laid on the origins of the allowances and the fact it would be "neither practical or desirable that these payments should be extended".
Any other differences in relation to either the calculation of overtime or the payment of other allowances arose from productivity-flexibility arrangements negotiated locally with the Dublin group. As a separate negotiating group they have entered into separate arrangements with the EHB on productivity-flexibility measures from which these concessions have flowed over time. Extension of any such concessions would represent separate further cost-increasing claims. The provincial group are entitled to only one such claim in the lifetime of the current agreement on pay as incorporated in theProgramme for Competitiveness and Work. The claim for basic pay parity represents their claim under this agreement.
Cecilia Keaveney
Question:130 Cecilia Keaveney asked the Minister for Health when the job description for ambulance drivers was last revised. [20354/96]
Limerick East): The revision of job descriptions for all non-officer grades is a matter for each of the health boards. Such job descriptions are updated as the need arises. In particular, these job descriptions come under scrutiny when recruitment competitions are to take place when they are reviewed for relevance.