Labour Court Database __________________________________________________________________________________ File Number: CD89559 Case Number: LCR12560 Section / Act: S67 Parties: UNIVERSITY DENTAL SCHOOL AND HOSPITAL CORK - and - IRISH MEDICAL ORGANISATION |
ayment for on-call duties in respect of junior dental staff employed as registrars and house surgeons.
Recommendation:
The Court having taken account of the submissions of the
parties recommends that Management's offer be modified by
increasing the ex-gratia payment to #1,200 (#600 at Christmas
and #600 at Summer).
Division: MrMcGrath Mr Brennan Mr Devine
Text of Document__________________________________________________________________
CD89559 RECOMMENDATION NO.LCR12560
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACTS, 1946 TO 1976
SECTION 67
PARTIES: UNIVERSITY DENTAL SCHOOL AND HOSPITAL CORK
(REPRESENTED BY THE FEDERATED UNION OF EMPLOYERS)
AND
IRISH MEDICAL ORGANISATION
SUBJECT:
1.Payment for on-call duties in respect of junior dental staff
employed as registrars and house surgeons.
BACKGROUND:
2. For the past number of years an on-call service had
been provided at the Cork Regional Hospital by a dental
professor employed by the University Dental Hospital, Cork and
a principal dental surgeon employed by the Southern Health
Board. The on-call service was provided by each on an
alternate week basis. In 1988the Dental Hospital requested
the seven dental registrars in itsemployment to undertake
on-call duties at the Cork Regional Hospital.In return for
providing this service the Dental Hospital proposed to pay
each registrar #500 per annum intravelling expenses. This
proposal was rejected and following meetings with the Irish
Medical Organisation the following offer was made by the
Hospital:- (a) The dental registrars would provide an
on-call service every second week.
(b) A lump sum payment of #600 (#300 at Christmas
and #300 at Summer) to be paid to each registrar
. (c) Annual leave would be increased by 5 days per
annum to compensate for time spent providing on-call duty.
This offer was rejected by the workers and the Organisation
quantified its claim as follows:-
(a) A maximum of 65 hours duty per week for each
registrar.
(b) Payment to be made for duty hours as
follows:-
(1) First forty hours (inclusive of lunchbreaks)
at basic pay.
(2) Forty to fifty hours at time plus a quarter.
(3) Fifty to sixty hours at time plus a half.
This claim was rejected by the Hospital. Registrars are
employed on yearly contracts and these were due to expire on
31st July, 1989. In the absence of agreement a dispute loomed
as the Dental Hospital insisted that the new contracts from
1st August, 1989 which included the conditions set out in the
Dental Hospital's final offer should be accepted or the
positions would be offered on to other applicants. The
Organisation contended that the contract terms were in dispute
but, under compromise proposals agreed at conciliation, the
registrars were advised to accept the contracts and that if
agreement on payment was not subsequently reached the matter
would be referred to a Labour Court hearing. As no agreement
was reached at the two conciliation conferences held on the
6th and 19th July, 1989 the matter was referred to a full
hearing in the Labour Court which took place on 30th August,
1989.
ORGANISATION'S ARGUMENTS:
3.1. The requirement to provide on-call services only came
into operation on 1st August, 1989. Therefore, there was
never any requirement to establish on-call rates for dental
registrars prior to this date. Given that the service which
is now being provided is the same as that provided by their
medical counterparts and taking into account the fact that the
salary scales are the same, the Organisation contends that the
most appropriate rates which should be paid are those payable
to medical registrars and that the same overtime rates should
also apply.
3.2. It should be pointed out that the on-call duty required
of the dental registrars will be much more onerous than
medical registrars in that they are required to be first
on-call whereas medical registrars in the Cork Regional
Hospital are normally third on-call after an Intern and a
House Officer. Junior Dental Surgeons who are employed in the
Maxillo-facial Department at St. James's Hospital are paid for
on-call duties at the same rates as their medical
counterparts. In Great Britain junior dental and medical
staff are paid at the same rates for providing an on-call
service.
3.3. The Hospital has abused the normal industrial relations
procedures by forcing the workers into a position whereby they
had no option but to accept the terms offered in the yearly
contracts.
3.4. The Organisation is claiming the appropriate rates of pay
for a service not provided heretofore. It does not therefore
accept the Hospital's contention that the claim should be
dealt with under the Programme for National Recovery.
HOSPITAL'S ARGUMENTS:
4.1. The Hospital does not accept the Organisation's argument
that as dental staff have pay parity with junior medical staff
they should have similar terms with regards to "on-call"
payments. The national contract for junior medical staff
takes account of hospital practices in the medical area only
and therefore has no direct relevance to holders of any post
in the dental area.
4.2. On-call services were provided by junior dental staff at
the old Dental Hospital up to 1982. The Organisation's claim
for payment in respect of the re-establishment of on-call
services is cost increasing and is in conflict with the
Programme for National Recovery.
4.3. Neither the University nor the Dental Hospital received
any allocation for the provision of this service to the
Regional Hospital. There is a limit on the financial
resources of the Hospital and its final offer in respect of
compensation for on-call services was very favourable for the
workers concerned.
RECOMMENDATION:
5. The Court having taken account of the submissions of the
parties recommends that Management's offer be modified by
increasing the ex-gratia payment to #1,200 (#600 at Christmas
and #600 at Summer).
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Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
Tom McGrath
18th September,1989. __________________
A.S. / M. F. Deputy Chairman