Tag Archives: midwives

The Union of Students in Ireland (USI) has welcomed the proposals to increase wages for students’ nurses and midwives. The proposals are to come into effect on March 1 after joint efforts of SIPTU nursing the Department of Health, PNA, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, independent facilitator Sean McHugh, HSE and INMO, with supporting research by USI. The USI found that 93% of student nurses have thought about emigrating when they qualify. USI are hopeful that this number will decrease once the pay increases come into effect. Student nurses and midwives are currently paid below the minimum wage at a rate of €6.49 an hour. “USI welcomes the action by the Government to relieve the strain on financially crippled student nurses,” Kevin Donoghue, USI president, said. “I read about one nursing student who was paid just €374 after tax for working 114 hours in three weeks, which equates to a mere €3.28 an hour. This change in the …

Members of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO), working in the country’s 26 emergency departments, on Tuesday evening rejected, by a margin of 58% to 42%, proposals, brokered by the WRC, to address overcrowding, staffing and patient safety issues. The INMO Executive Council, in response to the ballot result, has convened a National Meeting, of the Emergency Department Strike Committees and Representatives, for 12 noon, on this Thursday, in INMO Head Office. In addition, the executive council has sanctioned the first day of strike action, involving two hour rolling stoppages, for Thursday, January 14 ,with subsequent days of action following later. The INMO Executive Council, at a special meeting today, also reviewed the feedback from information meetings held in recent weeks. At these meetings it was clearly stated that members have no confidence, in local management, to deliver, on a 24/7 basis, the required changes to improve the environment for both patients and staff in Emergency Departments. This lack of confidence was confirmed, in …