Nurses due to continue strike action

By Jarlath Cowan

NURSES across Tyrone are set to return to the picket line tomorrow (Tuesday) for their second day of strike action in their ongoing pay dispute.

Last Thursday, Royal College of Nursing (RCN) members took to picket lines throughout the county for the first strike, after attempts to negotiate with the government over fairer pay and working conditions failed.

Across the Western Trust area, 587 outpatient appointments were postponed because of the strike and eight inpatient and day case procedures were also cancelled.

Eleven GP practices within the trust were closed and community nursing services were limited.

“We understand that striking will cause disruption for our patients and we don’t want that,” said Andrew Doherty, an RCN representative and Trade Union Secretary for the Western Trust.

”We would rather be in work looking after patients but we’re doing this to try and fix the broken system as best we can, by getting better pay which will help recruit and retain more nurses to provide better care. Every day, in every hospital, in every Trust, procedures are cancelled because there aren’t enough nurses to provide the care. There’s overcrowding in A&E and patients are waiting very long to be seen.”

Last month, nursing staff across Northern Ireland voted overwhelmingly to take strike action over pay levels and patient safety concerns.

Amidst the strike on Thursday, Laura McAleer, a respiratory nurse in Omagh Hospital, said, “Striking is not for me, but we have to make a mark, especially for student nurses and new graduates. We need safety for staff and better levels of pay.”

Royal College of Nursing General Secretary and Chief Executive, Pat Cullen, originally from Carrickmore, stated, “Nursing staff have been left with no alternative but to strike.”

Having met with Steve Barclay this week, she issued a press release, claiming, “The government was true to its word – they would not talk to me about pay,

“I needed to come out of this meeting with something serious to show nurses why they should not strike this week. Regrettably, they are not getting an extra penny.

“Ministers had too little to say and I had to speak at length about the unprecedented strength of feeling in the profession.”

The latest industrial action follows a historical walk-out by nurses in Northern Ireland in 2019 due to poor pay and conditions for staff.