IMPACT health workers in the Cork region staged a lunchtime protest outside Cork University Hospital yesterday (Wednesday, June 11) to highlight their concerns about cutbacks in the health service.

The protest was one of 28 which took place around the country yesterday afternoon which saw 28,000 professionals and therapists, social care workers, administrative and managerial staff, and others protesting at the recruitment freeze, which they say has left 2,700 vital jobs unfilled.

Since May, IMPACT members across the country have refused to cover posts left vacant by the HSE recruitment freeze. The health workers have also stopped co-operation with HSE advisors, blocked non-emergency overtime and out-of-hours work, and have halted co-operation with the HSE's so-called 'transformation programme'.

The 28,000 members of IMPACT working in HSE and HSE funded agencies across the country escalated their action on Monday last when they withdraw cooperation from reporting procedures.

The union says that this action will enable members to focus the current dispute on to the HSE at a corporate level, and minimise the effect of the action on patients.

The union says that the recruitment freeze is hurting existing services and preventing the implementation of promised improvements in areas like primary care, disability services, mental health services and care for older people.

Responding to yesterday's protest, the Health Service Executive said it was entirely regrettable that the IMPACT trade union has carried out an escalation of its industrial action.

In a statement issued yesterday the HSE that contrary to recent public statements by the IMPACT Union leadership, there is no embargo on recruitment in place within the public health service.

The statement said, "Since January 2008, over 3,400 posts have been approved to be filled which will bring the total number of staff employed across the HSE, Voluntary Hospitals and Voluntary Agencies to 128,000. In short, recruitment continues to happen - with a large number of important Medical Consultant posts approved and advertised every week."

The HSE has invited IMPACT to meet with senior management next Monday, June 17, to engage in dialogue with a view to agreeing a process towards resolving this dispute.

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