Fórsa and other unions representing staff working in HSE funded agencies (Section 39) secured an agreement on pay restoration for workers in the agencies at the beginning of October.

The measures were approved by Fórsa’s Health & Welfare divisional executive.

Under the proposals Section 39 workers will receive an additional payment of €1000 from April 2019. The deal is worth €7.7 million in 2019 alone.

The remaining pay restoration measures will be applied in 2020 and 2021, with full restoration for all Section 39 workers completed by October 2021.

• 45% of members will have 89% of the loss they suffered restored on 30th April 2019
• 56% of members will have 70% of loss restored
• Roughly 85% of members will receive more than 50% of their loss back as soon as the measures are applied next year

Meetings

Fórsa officials Catherine Keogh and Ian McDonnell said the proposals marked a successful conclusion to a very challenging process to achieve pay restoration for Fórsa members working in Section 39 agencies.

Catherine and Ian will host a series of pay restoration information meetings at Fórsa offices for members working in Section 39 agencies as follows:

• Thursday 18th October: Dublin (Nerney’s Court Room 3) at 6pm
• Thursday 8th November: Limerick at 1pm
• Thursday 8th November: Cork at 5.30pm
• Tuesday 12th November: Galway (venue to be confirmed due to refurbishment of Galway offices) at 2pm
• Wednesday 13th November: Sligo at 1pm

Catherine said the unions had achieved a significant result by working together, and thanked staff at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) for their efforts in finalising proposals.

"This has been a long road to pay restoration for our members in Section 39 agencies. It was a difficult campaign, but the outcome demonstrates that this was a fight worth having, restoring pay to members who provide vital caring services. The result also acknowledges - at last - that Section 39 workers suffered directly at the hands of government cuts," she said. 

The other unions representing staff were Siptu, Unite and the INMO, working together as part of a group led by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU).

A copy of the WRC proposals on Section 39 pay restoration is available here.

Updates on the information meetings will be posted here.