A major new study conducted by the progressive think-tank TASC has revealed a growing staff retention crisis in health services, with three-quarters of workers regularly considering leaving their role, and 67% ‘actively’ considering leaving. 

The Government’s proposed “targeted reforms” to the Assessment of Need (AoN) process promise faster assessments. But without a long-overdue workforce plan for children’s disability services, these reforms will fail. In an Op Ed published in The Irish Examiner in December, Fórsa national secretary Linda Kelly argues that process changes alone cannot fix a system already crippled by chronic understaffing. 

Fórsa Clinical Measurement Physiologists will begin industrial action on Friday 30 January in response to a stalled workforce review, inadequate consultation on new community hubs, and the outsourcing of CMP services. 

Fórsa has told the Government that Ireland’s 2026 Presidency of the Council of the European Union, which begins in July, must put housing, healthcare and the cost of living at the centre of the EU agenda.

Katie Morgan has been appointed Deputy General Secretary following an internal competition.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has condemned the continued blocking of Irish-funded maternity care from entering the Gaza strip and has urged the Irish Government to engage with its Israeli counterparts in ensuring the aid reaches those in need.