Ambulance Service To Ballot For Strike Action

SIPTU members in the HSE National Ambulance Service including advanced paramedics, emergency medical technicians, controllers and patient transport service professionals are to ballot for strike action over the refusal by the HSE to implement two binding Labour Court recommendations. SIPTU Health Division Organiser, Paul Bell said: "We have been given no alternative but to ballot all SIPTU members employed in the HSE National Ambulance Service for strike action in support of our claim for the implementation of two binding Labour Court recommendations under the terms of the Haddington Road Agreement, both of which were issued over a year ago.

"It is also of concern that the Health Service Oversight Body formed to oversee the implementation of the Haddington Road Agreement and which is comprised of members of the Health Group of Unions, the HSE, the Department of Health and headed by the chairman of the Labour Relations Commission has had its unanimous call for implementation of the Labour Court recommendations totally stone walled without explanation."

Paul Bell said that both Labour Court recommendations are extremely significant as they address the issues of redeployment as a consequence of the restructuring of services operated by the National Ambulance Service. Labour Court Recommendation 20456 addresses staff redeployment following the closure of Ambulance Command and Control Centres throughout the country in favour of a two centre Command and Control operation in Ballyshannon and Dublin.

(CD/IT)