Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank all the speakers this morning for all the submissions they already have made and for the work that has been done over the last four months in particular.

I wish to raise an issue from the HSE report about the breakdown of healthcare workers. One of the concerning figures is of the 8,260 workers - it is now up slightly from 8,260 - some 2,878 of those identified with Covid-19 had underlying clinical conditions. I am extremely concerned that a person working in the HSE with an underlying medical condition then appeared to have been put in the front line. I have evidence of that because a number of people contacted me over the past three to four months where they looked to be assigned to other areas rather than being on the front line and dealing with Covid-19.

Was that issue taken up by any union with the HSE during the course of the last four months, whereby staff with previous medical conditions and who were a high-risk category were required to work on the front line?