Written Answers. - Public Health Doctors Dispute.
John Deasy
Question:
489
Mr. Deasy
asked the
Minister for Health and Children
the efforts being made to resolve the present dispute with public health doctors; and the reason the recommendations of the Brennan review carried out in 1994 have not been implemented.
[15204/03]
John Deasy
Question:
490
Mr. Deasy
asked the
Minister for Health and Children
the present out of hours structure in place for public health doctors.
[15205/03]
John Deasy
Question:
491
Mr. Deasy
asked the
Minister for Health and Children
when it is proposed to pay salary arrears due to public health doctors which have been withheld since 1994; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
[15206/03]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 489 to 491, inclusive, together.
The public health review is also known as the Brennan review. It commenced in 1999 and published its recommendations in April 2002, not in 1994. The review was charged with reviewing the operations of public health departments and community public health medical services of the health boards in the context of the 1994 memorandum of agreement between the Department and the Irish Medical Organisation. It also considered future developments for these services. The group comprised representatives of my Department, the health boards and the Irish Medical Organisation.
There was agreement on many of the matters considered by the group, including the need for a formally structured out of hours arrangement. There was one main area of disagreement. The IMO held the view that public health directors and specialists should have parity with hospital consultants, while management felt that this was outside the group's terms of reference. The report did not make a recommendation on the matter and the chairman recognised that any such issues referred to by the official side must be the subject of industrial relations negotiations. The report also acknowledged that there might be a need to revisit the recommendations in relation to public health following the implementation of proposed changes recommended by the health strategy and the primary care strategy.
Formal and informal talks have been held with the IMO on these issues since the publication of the Brennan report. The issues central to the public health doctors dispute have been the subject of negotiations between the IMO and management, comprising officials from the Health Service Employers Agency, my Department and the health boards over the past 12 months. Initially this was done through joint discussions and in more recent times under the aegis of the Labour Relations Commission.
Since the commencement of strike action by the IMO efforts have been made at the highest level to reach a satisfactory conclusion. Management made a substantial offer to the IMO.
On 14 March, at informal talks in the LRC, management made an offer of 10.5%, excluding benchmarking, through the independent chairperson. On 18 March the offer was confirmed in writing by the HSEA. The application of such an increase, as well as the increases awarded to public health doctors under benchmarking and the Sustaining Progress national agreement, would result in increases of between €11,000 and €29,000 for them between now and 2005.
The IMO claimed that payment arrears are due since 1997, not 1994 as the Deputy has stated. Any retrospective element would form part of the overall agreement between management and the IMO.
The HSEA also requested the IMO to agree to have all outstanding issues referred to the Labour Court. Unfortunately, the IMO did not agree to this request and the strike started on 14 April. On at least three occasions since then I have asked the IMO to return to the negotiating table. In addition, the national implementation body has urged the IMO to suspend its strike and to avail of the industrial relations mechanisms, in accordance with the conditions of the national pay agreement, Sustaining Progress.
Earlier this month exploratory talks took place in the LRC with the HSEA and officials of my Department. At these talks management indicated its willingness to discuss the implementation of the recommendations of the Brennan report, including the development of a structured out of hours system. The 10.5% increase was again offered. During these talks management stressed that the issue of the granting of consultant status to directors and specialists was not the subject of a recommendation by the review group on public health.
The 30% pay increase called for by the doctors is in addition to the Sustaining Progress agreement. The IMO was involved in the discussions which led to the recent partnership agreement. It was also a signatory, in its role as a member of ICTU, indicating their acceptance of the agreement. By their acceptance the parties involved agreed to preclude strikes or other forms of industrial action. When local negotiations prove to be unsuccessful they have agreed to refer any matters to the LRC or the Labour Court.
The signatories of Sustaining Progress have committed themselves to stable industrial relations and the maintenance of a well managed industrial relations environment in order to mini mise disputes affecting the level of service to the public. The national implementation body emphasised this when, in its press release of 24 April, it called upon the IMO to suspend its strike action and to agree to a referral of the matter to the Labour Court.
Across the health system different levels of staff enter claims about a variety of issues related to their terms and conditions of employment. If each of these claims was to be conceded, without challenge, the resources available would not be used effectively. There are general frameworks – for example, the various pay agreements – within which such claims must be examined and considered. There is also the formal industrial relations machinery through which valid claims must be processed. It is simply not within my power nor that of my Department nor the HSEA nor any other agent of management to simply concede major pay claims just because they have been demanded. Such a concession is not given to any group in the health system nor the wider public services.
Although the current out of hours system is unstructured and informal management has indicated its willingness to discuss the implementation of the recommendations of the Brennan report, including the development of a structured system. Since 31 May there has been a series of meetings at the LRC between management and the IMO. Although significant progress was made at the most recent meeting held on 6 June it was not possible to conclude a final agreement.
