Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Labour Court recommendation of 20 November is very clear. It states "The Court has given careful consideration to the submissions of both parties and is clear that the worker’s pay is clearly aligned with the HSE pay scales." The Irish Wheelchair Association was the key mover in the case. It could not be clearer but yet, as Deputy Barry noted, we are just a few days away from a work stoppage involving 7,500 workers in nine section 39 organisations. As the Minister knows, they provide services to some of the most vulnerable citizens in our community. It is outrageous that we have reached this stage. The Not for Profit Association has been negotiating with the Minister for almost a year. When I visited the Irish Wheelchair Association last year, I raised the matter with the current Taoiseach, who admonished me that in no way were services to be cut. It was up to him, however, to bring the funding up to the required level for those organisations. The Government had an opportunity in budget 2018. We had a discussion yesterday and other debates about the deficit in the health budget for 2018. I welcome that the Minister has said he is prepared to reach but he needs to move very fast, as my colleague has said.

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