The Irish Times reports that healthcare assistants are largest group to benefit from the proposals on Section 39 pay restoration, which was welcomed and approved by Fórsa's Health & Welfare divisional executive yesterday. Our colleagues Catherine Keogh and Ian McDonnell, who have represented Fórsa Section 39 workers throughout the long negotiation process (and late into Tuesday night) are mentioned in the Irish Examiner's coverage.
Public service pay is entering the spotlight more, particularly in the context of this week's pay improvements under the PSSA, the new entrants measures last week and the Section 39 deal. Weekend commentary on this issue is due to pick up (last weekend it caught the attention of Pat Leahy in the IT and also Dan O'Brien - comparing public/private pay figures in the UK - in the Sindo).
ISME are (as usual) rolled out to demand the gap be closed to 10% by 2025 (that's a great idea guys, we applaud any pay improvements in the private sector that will make that happen!). And just in case you thought the Indo has abandoned the recycling of 2008 shrieking invective, they wheel out Senator Joe O'Toole's "ATM" quote for an airing.
It'd almost bring a glisten of nostalgic tears to your eyes.
Almost, once you're finished rolling your eyes to heaven.
Elsewhere, Minister for Health Simon Harris announced the membership of the Sláintecare Implementation Advisory Council yesterday.
Members include former INMO general secretary Liam Doran, Dr Anthony O’Connor (Consultant Gastroenterologist at Tallaght University Hospital, and quite good on Twitter as it happens), television presenter Brendan Courtney (Courtney's TV documentary We Need to Talk About Dad, focused on the difficult choices faced by his family trying to provide care to his father following a stroke. It highlighted in particular the difficulties in navigating the Fair Deal nursing home support scheme), and our old friend (!) Dr Eddie Molloy.
For a little off-topic but on-the-money reading, I heartily recommend George Monbiot's recent column - Our cult of personality is leaving real life in the shade - just about the best analysis of the malaise of modern media I've seen in a while.
For some Zen, I offer a clip of comedian David O'Doherty, who I saw last night in Vicar Street. He was being interviewed by the equally entertaining Adam Buxton (host of one of the best podcasts ever) as part of the Dublin Podcast Festival. And he was brilliantly funny. His dad (respected jazz pianist and all-round music man Jim Doherty) wrote the Safe Cross Code theme tune and the theme for Wanderly Wagon. Buxton loved the audience reaction to this, remarking how they were so clearly stamped into our collective DNA.
