David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister will be aware that when he attended a conference organised by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, INMO, he made a clear commitment there would be no cliff edge and that the payment would not simply end without an alternative in place. That is precisely what happened. I was in contact with the INMO today to find out whether there were any changes to the special leave with pay payment for front-line workers with Covid. There have not been, so at the moment there is no support. Of course the Minister can talk about the merit of a scheme but we have similar schemes in place for, for example, front-line workers who contract MRSA, or in the past contracted TB, or blood-spread illnesses and a whole range of different risks front-line workers must take when they go into work. Covid is an occupational hazard and there is obviously an additional risk for those on the front-line, so it is not good enough that cliff edge has come and workers with long Covid have gone over it and are now entitled to no payment because the Minister simply did not extend that option to them.

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