FULL RECOMMENDATION
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACTS, 1946 TO 2004 SECTION 26(1), INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACT, 1990 PARTIES : MATER HOSPITAL AND ST. JAMES'S HOSPITAL (REPRESENTED BY HSE-EA) - AND - IRISH MUNICIPAL, PUBLIC AND CIVIL TRADE UNION DIVISION : Chairman: Mr McGee Employer Member: Mr Murphy Worker Member: Ms Ni Mhurchu |
1. Retrospection Payment of On-Call Allowance for Perfusionists
BACKGROUND:
2. The issue in dispute concerns approximately 20 Perfusionists employed at the Mater and St James's Hospitals who are seeking retrospective payments in respect of enhanced On-Call rates for the period 6th January, 2003 - 24th May, 2005. Following an agreement reached at Conciliation in 2003 it was agreed that Theatre Nurses would be paid a revised On-Call rate with effect from 6th January, 2003. In 2005 the Employers agreed to pay the On-Call rate to the Perfusionsists with effect from 24th May, 2005. The Union's claim is that the On-Call allowance should be paid to the Perfusionists from the 6th January, 2003. Management rejected the claim. The dispute was referred 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 14th August, 2006. A Court hearing was held on the 1st December, 2006.
UNION'S ARGUMENTS:
3. 1. The On-Call rates for Perfusionists have been directly linked to those of Theatre Nurses for almost 25 years. The Claimants queried with Management why the new pro-rata payments were not applied to their On-Call rates which were formerly identical with those of the Theatre Nurses and a simple correction of this extraordinary anomaly was sought by the Claimants in 2003 to no avail.
2. The proposed solution is for the immediate payment of all monies owed to the Perfusionists for pro-rata /On-Call work carried out in excess of 12 hours on Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays from the 6th January, 2003 to the 24th May, 2005.
EMPLOYER'S ARGUMENTS:
4. 1. The estimated cost of this claim is in excess of €100,000 and neither Hospital is in a position to fund any claim from its existing resources.
2. At no stage in the original negotiations did the Union seek the enhancement of the package available to their members to reflect the revised arrangements then applying to Theatre Nurses. Perfusionists were only ever in receipt of one element of the Theatre Nursing On-Call /Call-Out agreement. Their own agreement for Call-Out was and continues to be much more generous than that applying to Theatre Nurses. If the full Theatre Nursing package were to apply to Perfusionists it would result in significantly reduced overall earnings for the grades concerned.
RECOMMENDATION:
The Court recommends that the Union's claim be conceded and paid with effect from 6th January, 2003 and up to 24th May, 2005, from which latter date the claim has already been conceded and paid.
Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
Raymond McGee
5th December, 2006
tod______________________
Deputy Chairman
NOTE
Enquiries concerning this Recommendation should be addressed to Tom O'Dea, Court Secretary.