Graduate nurses will get 18pc hike in new deal, says union
NEWLY-GRADUATED nurses will be the big winners with a wage boost of up to 18pc under a new deal to end strikes, the main nursing union has claimed.
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) said most staff nurses will end up with a rise that fulfils or comes close to their key demand for equal pay with other health professionals.
The union has come back fighting after taking a hammering from disgruntled members on social media who questioned the wisdom of calling off a three-day strike this week.
In a message to members, the union leaders also hint they expect more pay rises under a new independent expert review of the nursing profession put forward in the Labour Court proposals.
The court’s recommendations were offered to nurses in a bid to resolve a bitter dispute over their demand for equal pay with other health professionals.
A combination of a higher pay scale under the proposals and extension of allowances worth €2,229 and €3,350 to thousands of nurses will bring big benefits, according to the union.
“The new scale, combined with the location or qualification allowance gives a higher gross pay than allied health professionals at almost all points on the scale,” said the union dispatch sent yesterday.
“We expect further advances under the Independent Expert Group.”
The message notes the increases are on top of pay
Staff nurse with 16 years’ experience would receive a 9pc increase to €52,821
rises already due under the public sector pay deal of 1.75pc this September and 2pc in October next year, as well as reductions in a pension levy worth €250.
It gives examples of nurses at different stages of their career including a newly qualified staff nurse, Siobhan, who would benefit to the tune of 18pc after a year and 16 weeks.
The message says the proposals mean she would end up on €38,036 a year in that timeframe, compared to €32,171 under current arrangements.
This is €5,865, or 18pc more, it says.
The wage boost would come through a combination of skipping pay increments, moving to a higher “enhanced practice” pay scale and a location allowance worth €2,230.
However, under a separate deal on two-tier pay recent recruits are already due to skip two increments.
Nurses will skip them earlier under the proposals and will be on higher pay for longer.
A staff nurse with 16 years’ experience would get a 9pc increase to €52,821, while an intellectual disability nurse with nine years’ experience would get a 12pc increase.
The message also highlights senior nurses will get higher pay after 17 years, not the current 20. The message was sent after the union’s executive council recommended that its members back the proposals to halt industrial action that caused a near shut down of the health service.
Following a meeting at the Green Isle Hotel in Dublin, the leadership said this is subject to the outcome of talks on a new nursing contract over the next three weeks.
Balloting on the proposals will take place between March 11 and 25, with a result likely the following day.
However, a strike by paramedics is set to go ahead tomorrow, which is a separate dispute over union recognition.
The HSE said the Department of Defence has made a number of crewed ambulances available and managers will carry out front-line duties.