Medical scientists have suspended their strike action after accepting an invitation to Labour Court talks. The Labour Court intervened in the dispute on Tuesday, inviting both parties to engage in exploratory talks starting on Wednesday.

In other news, Fórsa’s calls for all employers to offer menstrual health policy in the workplace continues to gain traction.

Rank and file soldiers will for the first time have a voice at upcoming national pay talks after a settlement announced in the High Court allowing representative body PDForra to have temporary associate membership of the union umbrella body, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu). The settlement agreement announced in court on Tuesday provides that the Ictu temporary associate membership is solely for forthcoming pay negotiations up to June 30th, 2024, or until relevant amending legislation is passed.

Hospitality workers have said the industry needs a serious shake-up if it is to address the current recruitment crisis, as many have decided to leave the sector entirely for better-paid jobs with more manageable hours. Currently, there are tens of thousands of vacancies in bars, hotels and restaurants across the country.

Gardai have highlighted the under-staffing in the armed support units which they say is putting members of the force at immediate and serious risk. Speaking at the Garda Representative Association (GRA) annual conference in Westport in Mayo, officers described situations where they claimed to have waited over an hour for armed members to attend dangerous scenes.

Meanwhile, authorities in Texas say the victim death toll from the tragic Uvalde school shooting now stands at 19 children and two adults. In his address, President Joe Biden called for Americans to stand up against the country’s powerful pro-gun lobby after the latest deadly attack, which took place at Robb Elementary School.

And elsewhere, workers removed the trademark "Golden Arches" sign from a McDonald's restaurant just north of Moscow today. This is the first stage of the rebranding of the fast food company's outlets started in Russia, days after it announced plans to exit the country.

Lastly, this one school decided to have an ‘anything but a bag day’ and some of the results are truly unimaginable, ranging from kitchen sinks to Henry hoovers and more. 

Have a good day everyone.