Health

The younion trade union reports that a trade union-backed petition calling for better pay and conditions in healthcare has been blocked by a parliamentary committee. The citizens' initiative, supported by over 70,000 signatories, called for action on the major problems facing the sector, including a demand for more training and better pay for trainees, a national assessment of staffing needs and recognition of nursing as an arduous occupation. The parliamentary committee on petitions and citizens' initiatives decided no further action would be taken in response to the petition, despite the

Members of the STAL trade union working in the waste sector have been taking action over pay, collective bargaining rights and precarious employment. The workers at FCC Environment were set to strike on 7-11 April while those employed by ERSUC were due to take action on 10-11 April. Action over pay was also planned for 6-9 April by STAL members employed by the PSML company that maintains the Parque de Sintra site. Members of the SINTAP union were due to take industrial action at the Infraestruturas road and rail maintenance company on 6 April over pay, collective bargaining and staffing while

Members of UNISON at the Environment Agency will take four more days of strike action on 14-17 April with the employers failing to respond to calls to negotiate on an improved pay offer. After the latest strike day on 31 March, health workers in Northern Ireland have called off further action pending a re-opening of negotiations over pay. This is separate from the pay dispute in England where unions are awaiting the response to their consultation of members over a revised pay offer. However, junior doctors in England in the BMA trade union, who are covered by a separate agreement, are

Health sector trade unions, including the FNV and NU’91 have secured an improved pay offer from hospital employers following the strike action earlier this month and the threat of further action in April. A general pay rise of 5% will be backdated to 1 February and there will be a further 5% increase on 1 December, with a minimum increase of €150 per month. On 1 June 2024, wages in the lowest salary scales will increase by 5%, with a floor of €150. Workers on higher salary scales will get an additional 2%, plus €180. There is the possibility to re-open negotiations depending on inflation

On 20 March, following warning strikes around the country in February, the vida trade union managed to negotiate a collective agreement for private hospitals with a 10.56% wage increase and €2000 minimum monthly wage. The increase takes effect on 1 July along with a cut in working time to 39 hours per week. The minimum increase for full-time employment is €180 and part-time employees will see pay increase by 9.56% and allowances by 7.53%. Employees will also get a €1600 net payment in four instalments by 30 June. Pay for apprentices will increase from 1 July to €815 in the first, €925 in the

Public service trade unions, including SDLSN and HSMSS-MT, have expressed major concerns at the attempt by the government to rush to set up a new pay system covering the 240,000 workers in the public sector. The unions argue that there are many factors at play covering different groups of workers that make it impossible to complete negotiations by the end of June. The government says that the changes are needed as part of the reforms required by the European Union for Croatia to access funds from the EU’s Recovery and Resilience Facility. The unions are worried that legislation will be put

The SINTAP union is planning strike action on 6 April in the government’s Infraestruturas company that deals with road and rail building and maintenance. This follows two days of action on 28 February and 2 March and the failure of the company to respond to the union’s demands on pay, purchasing power, collective bargaining and staff shortages. SINTAP is also planning 12 days’ of strikes and a one-month overtime ban at the Fernando Fonseca hospital in protest at management’s failure to implement the collective agreement signed in 2018.

The FNV and NU’91 unions have called a national day of industrial action across the hospital sector on 16 March when only a Sunday service will be provided. The unions are demanding a 10% pay increase in response to the surge in the cost of living and as one measure to help deal with the staffing crisis. The NU’91 also is also organising a broader campaign on the crisis in care with a demonstration in Utrecht on 9 March where it encouraged everyone to wear black and then to back its “every Tuesday in black” campaign.

The PCS civil service union has been running a targeted campaign of industrial action to support its claim for higher pay and in defence of pensions and jobs. A nationwide action was organised on 1 March and then again on 15 March another national strike took place to coincide with the announcement of the government’s budget. The campaign of industrial action continues with various government agencies targeted with a series of one- and two-day strikes until the end of March. Meanwhile, some health service unions have suspended strike action during talks with the government over pay. However

Health workers were involved in warning strikes across the country on 14 and 15 March as the ver.di trade union builds support for its negotiations covering 2.5 million workers in federal and local government. The union is seeking a pay rise of 10.5% with a minimum increase of €500 a month. There was also action by workers in early years education and other social services to coincide with International Women’s Day on 8 March.

The INMO nurses’ union is to ballot intensive care unit nurses at University Hospital Limerick in pursuance of safe staffing, having exhausted local negotiations to resolve the problem. The union argues that the lack of consistent safe staffing is having a detrimental impact on the physical and mental wellbeing of workers and patients. This follows INMO’s executive council decision in February to sanction a campaign of industrial action in response to members reporting that unsafe staffing is the norm in many hospitals. The union has also called on the Department of Health and the Health