Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE) | Oireachtas source

This morning, I visited the picket line of medical scientists at Tallaght University Hospital. They are among the more than 2,000 members of the Medical Laboratory Scientists Association, MLSA, who are on strike today. By the way, the public support for them and the support from patients were quite overwhelming. These are the hidden heroes of our health service. They are the people who process test samples for Covid-19, who do blood tests and who test urine and stool samples. They have been under intense pressure during the Covid-19 crisis. Many of them are now suffering burnout as a result of problems with recruitment and retention, which mean that one in five medical scientist places are currently unfilled.

Their work is vital for modern medical treatment. The medical services that we all rely on depend on them being there and on them carrying out their specialised work. However, the Government, in its mistreatment of these workers, has brought us to the point of a serious crisis. Over 10,000 outpatient appointments were cancelled today as a result.

These hidden heroes are shamefully paid 8% less than clinical biochemists, who do a very similar job. Pay parity was recommended back in 2001 by an expert group. That was accepted by the HSE and the Department of Health. Yet, more than two decades on, it has not been implemented. The workers described to me a situation whereby laboratory aides have a starting salary that is higher than that of medical scientists. Therefore, there is a situation where many people start over the summer as laboratory aides, because they cannot then start as medical scientists. They then have to take a pay cut in order to become the more highly qualified medical scientists.

Now, like most workers across the country, they are feeling the impact of the cost-of-living crisis. Their rent is going up, their electricity costs are going up, their petrol or diesel costs are going up but yet, their wages are not going up. Enough is enough for them. They need action on pay parity in order that they can survive. They need action to fill the one in five medical scientist positions that are unfilled as a result of the underinvestment into our health service.

The strength of anger and of feeling of these workers was demonstrated by the vote in favour of industrial action last November, when they voted 98% in favour of action. They were due to strike in March but postponed that to facilitate further negotiations. There was, however, no meaningful offer from the HSE. Now they have no choice but to go ahead with strike action today. If there are not meaningful negotiations, they will go ahead with two days of strike action next week and with three days the following week. They are looking for the Taoiseach to intervene, to direct the HSE to sit down with the workers’ representatives and agree to grant pay parity and to filling the unfilled posts.

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