Harney's warning on work-to-rule

Health Minister, Mary Harney, has said that staff in the HSE cannot continue to be paid if they are not doing their jobs and that the current situation could not continue.

She was commenting on the industrial action by IMPACT members in the HSE, which has meant that HSE management cannot get access to key financial data.

The HSE has convened its National Crisis Management Team to deal with the problems caused by the work-to-rule.

The crisis team is expected to consider plans to cut €200 million from the HSE budget to put into an emergency reserve fund to deal with any unexpected shrortalls resulting from management not having sight of key financial data.

The Minister said it was essential at a time when resources were finite and the taxpayer was providing those resources that they were accountable to the taxpayer and were able to measure how money was spent.

The Minister said she had full confidence in the management of the HSE to deal with the crisis.

IMPACT has accused the HSE of seeking to intimidate members  with warnings of potential disciplinary action over the work-to-rule.

The action is in protest at public service pay cuts. The stand-off between the HSE and IMPACT comes as public service unions are balloting members on the Croke Park deal on public sector pay and reforms.

HSE CEO Prof Brendan Drumm, in a letter to staff, said some staff are continuing to receive full pay, yet are not doing the work they are paid to do, and that this is having a severe affect on the HSE's ability to manage its business.

Prof Drumm wrote that he hoped there would still be a window of opportunity to deal with the issues but in the absence of a resolution in the very near future, the HSE will be forced to take a more direct approach.

He said that if cuts were introduced they would have an immediate effect on services and patients.

The IMPACT union says it is awaiting clarifications on the Croke Park pay deal and has accused the HSE of trying to intimidate members into ending their action, with threats that staff could be taken off the payroll.

[Posted: Thu 29/04/2010]