FULL RECOMMENDATION
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACTS, 1946 TO 2004 SECTION 26(1), INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACT, 1990 PARTIES : HEALTH SERVICE EMPLOYERS (REPRESENTED BY HEALTH SERVICE EXECUTIVE) - AND - MLSA DIVISION : Chairman: Ms Jenkinson Employer Member: Mr Doherty Worker Member: Mr Nash |
1. Pay parity with Biochemists' Grade.
BACKGROUND:
2. The Union's claim on behalf of Medical Scientists is for the restoration of pay parity with Biochemists. In May 1997 the Labour Relations Commission put forward proposals for the settlement of the Union's pay claims under the PCW on behalf of the Medical Scientists. In addition a recommendation was made for the establishment of an Expert Group to look at all issues affecting the profession. The Report was published in 2001. The Expert Group recommended the formal acknowledgement of the unified career structure between Medical Scientists and other scientist grades. The report of the Public Service Benchmarking Body (PSSB) issued in July, 2002 made separate and distinct awards to the two groups. The Union is claiming the implementation of the report of the Expert Group together with the Benchmarking Body Report. Management rejected the claim stating that the Expert Group Report has been superseded by the Benchmarking Report. The dispute was refereed to the Labour Relations Commission. A conciliation conference was held but agreement was not reached. The dispute was referred to the Labour Court on the 30th November, 2004 in accordance with Section 26(1)of the Industrial Relations Act, 1990. A Court hearing was held on the 10th February, 2004.
UNION'S ARGUMENTS:
3. 1. An Independent Expert Group has evaluated, adjudicated on the work of Medical Scientists and Biochemists and has concluded that there is a lack of any real difference in their work and consequently recommended that they be paid the same in accordance with the most elementary concept of fairness and justice - equal pay for equal work.
2. The Employers have acknowledged the uniformity of the qualifications and work undertaken by Medical Scientists and Biochemists. Biochemists are currently paid the same on- call and out of hours rates as Medical Scientists underlying further the uniform nature of the work undertaken.
3. The Union cannot accept the "academic argument" put forward by Management that the PSBB recommendations supersedes all other agreements and thereby ignore the extensive findings of the Expert Group Report. The PSBB, in making its recommendations, stated that the Expert Review Group was concurrent with the benchmarking process and thereby does not supersede the Expert Group recommendations.
4. The continued pay anomaly created by the employers as a result of failing to implement in full the Expert Group Report has, in effect, re-established the professional divisions within Hospital Laboratories which the Expert Group Report recommended be removed in view of the uniform nature of the work, conditions, skills, effort, and qualifications required for both grades.
EMPLOYERS' ARGUMENTS:
4. 1. The Union opted to have all its grades evaluated and examined by the PSBB. It recommended increases for Medical Scientist grades, inclusive of awards under the Expert Group ranging from 3.3 to 14%. Biochemistry grades were not put forward for Benchmarking and were placed on the "B" list. Their Benchmarking was to the grade of Speech and Language Therapist. These grades obtained increases ranging from 12% to 25%. Management advised the Union that there were no circumstances in which the Benchmarking findings could not be altered in any way.
2. The Benchmarking process severed all previous pay links and established new absolute levels of pay for all public service grades. The Report states that "no benchmarked grade may receive a further increase as a consequence of the body's recommendations as they affect any other grade, whether benchmarked or not".
3. The claim, if conceded would serve to totally undermine the benchmarking process and Government pay policy because it would open the possibility of other groups taking claims for changes in their awards based on historical relativities.
4. This is a clear attempt to improve upon a benchmarking award that falls short of the expectations of a group of employees. There are a number of other such groups who have had to accept and live with the findings. All groups who went through the benchmarking process were fully cognisant of the ground rules obtaining.
RECOMMENDATION:
The Union's claim before the Court relates to the pay anomaly that exists between Medical Scientists and Biochemists as a result of the failure to implement the Expert Group Report on Medical Laboratory Technician/Technologists Grades which recommended the removal of this anomaly.
The response of the HSEA to the claim is that if it were to be conceded, it would have the effect of overturning the Benchmarking Body's recommendations as that body severed all previous pay links, it established new absolute levels of pay and stated that no benchmarked group could receive a further increase as a consequence of the body's recommendations to another grade.
Having considered the views of the parties expressed in the oral and written submissions, the Court notes the explicit wording of the PSBB, which stated:-
"This grade has been subject to review by the Expert Review Group on Medical Laboratory Technician/Technologists Grades, concurrent with the benchmarking process. The combined value of the increases recommended by the Expert Review and the Body range from......."
The Biochemists Grades were linked with Speech Therapists Grades as part of the 'B' list of Benchmarking and consequently received increases in excess of those recommended for the Medical Scientists Grades.
The Court notes that the differing Benchmarking awards has created a difficulty in terms of the Expert Group's intention to create a single career structure including a designated title for the profession and a unified career structure.
The Court is satisfied that the HSEA implemented the Expert Group Report in March 2002 with retrospective effect to 1st April 2000.
The Court is also satisfied that in reaching its conclusions, the Benchmarking Body took cognisance of the Expert Review Group's recommendations and therefore recommended new scales to take account of the combined effect of both bodies recommended increases. Therefore, the Court accepts that despite the fact that this results in the creation of a new anomaly, the PSBB's recommended scales for each of the Medical Scientists Grades are the appropriate scales at this point in time. Therefore, the Court does not recommend in favour of the Union's claim.
Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
Caroline Jenkinson
21st February, 2005______________________
TOD/BRDeputy Chairman
NOTE
Enquiries concerning this Recommendation should be addressed to Tom O'Dea, Court Secretary.