Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Our healthcare workers have been extraordinary over the past 18 months and that extraordinary effort warrants special recognition from the Government. Whatever we do in the coming weeks must be done in a fair and inclusive way. The Deputy has placed the emphasis on healthcare workers, which is justifiable. However, there are many others across the public service who did great work over this time, including those in the Prison Service, Garda, Defence Forces, the Department of Social Protection and the Revenue Commissioners, all of whom continued to work along with many others in the public sector. In the private sector, shop workers kept the show on the road in the darkest of days of the Covid-19 pandemic along with cleaners and refuse collectors. We need to consider all these issues and to be as fair as we possibly can.

There is a very significant cost associated with the claim that was lodged by the INMO and other health worker unions for ten days' leave across the health service. The minimum cost would be €377 million given that it would almost certainly involve a level of overtime and agency staff to provide the necessary cover, the cost would almost certainly exceed €500 million. To provide the same ten days' leave across the full public service, the cost would exceed €1 billion. The costs are very significant

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