Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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551. To ask the Minister for Health if he will intervene in the developing situation with nursing and midwifery staff of Midlands Regional Hospital, Mullingar that are due to return from maternity leave having utilised all of their other leave entitlements and are now being forced to consider leaving their careers due to the lack of available childcare. [13588/20]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I understand that the HSE has circulated the Guidance and FAQs for Public Service Employers during COVID-19 in relation to working arrangements and temporary assignments across the Public Service prepared by DPER to all public health sector managers advising that staff with caring responsibilities should be facilitated to attend work and/or work from home in a flexible manner to the greatest extent possible. 

HSE management are providing a range of additional flexible work patterns, changes to rosters, remote working, changes to parental leave arrangements and other adjustment measures to staff.

The HSE has provided additional clarification to managers in relation to working arrangements for those with caring responsibilities by way of circular. This circular clearly sets out that if employees cannot work outside the home and cannot perform their current role remotely, the employee is still to be considered as actively on duty and available to work from home, and may be assigned work outside the employee’s usual core duties.

I have asked the HSE to revert to the Deputy directly in relation to this issue.