John Brassil (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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169. To ask the Minister for Health his plans to review the terms and conditions of Health Service Executive employed chefs and cooks as there has been no review of their terms since 2000 and no increase in their working wage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21709/16]

John Brassil (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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217. To ask the Minister for Health to request the Health Service Executive to review terms and conditions for its chefs and catering staff, given that there has been no review since 2000, and in turn no salary review; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21886/16]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 169 and 217 together.

Public sector pay agreements have sanctioned general round increases in public sector pay on numerous occasions in the past 16 years. I can confirm that pay scales for the grades the Deputy is querying have risen in line with these general round pay increases as appropriate.

Most recently, the Lansdowne Road Agreement and the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2015 gave effect to adjustments to annualised salaries up to €31,000 from 1st January 2016 which has resulted in an increase in the salaries of many of the catering grades in the health sector.

With regard to the terms and conditions of these grades, I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter. If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days he should contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.