Mr. Kevin Figgis:

I will. I thank the Senator for the question. This is just another example of these historical policies that have been in place within the HSE. They predate the HSE, so they would have been in place prior to the HSE even being a thing. We have seen some of them slowly being erased over time. For example, there used to be a different pension scheme and a different sick leave scheme for non-officers. The title for support staff is exactly that. They were classed as non-officers versus other categories of staff who were classed as officer staff. We have been vehemently opposed to this.

We previously raised this a number of years ago and the HSE's view at the time was that it was a cost increasing claim. It was going to review it as if the union was lodging a pay claim and that it was cost increasing. We raised it with the HSE again two years ago. The HSE advised us that it is not averse to this. It accepted the argument that having a policy that was unequal towards staff would not stand up, and also that there had been changes in policies, such as the pension scheme and sick leave scheme, as I said. At this moment, it is with the Department of Health. We understand that the Department of Health has received a full briefing from the HSE and it is for the Department to then engage with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.

It is important that the data the HSE provided us state that support staff are the second category who have been subject to highest level of physical attack within the service. These are people such as porters, catering assistants, household staff, security staff and paramedics who are simply trying to help people working in the health service. The last thing they expect is to be physically assaulted in trying to do that.

The Senator outlined a scenario where a number of staff can be involved in the same incident. To say that the policy of our national health service is that we will deal with those staff differently by tier and that after three months, a support worker will be told they have used up their leave and have to use their own sick leave, or may have to go off pay if they have no more sick leave, is simply unacceptable given the fact that other staff who may have been involved in the same incident will remain in benefit. It is a shameful policy and it does not belong in a modern health system.