Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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340. To ask the Minister for Health the way that a criterion (details supplied) was developed; and the person or body that was involved in the development of same. [49223/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Firstly, I would like to acknowledge the important role that Section 39 organisations and staff play in our health sector. They have a key role in providing services to people with disabilities and older people.

Under Section 39 of the Health Act 2004, the HSE provides assistance to organisations that provide services similar or ancillary to a service that the HSE may provide. However, Section 39 organisations are privately owned and run, and the terms and conditions of employment of staff in these organisations, once in line with employment legislation, are strictly between the employer and the employee.

In relation to pay restoration, the HSE conducted a data gathering exercise in relation to an agreed list of 50 Section 39 pilot organisations. The results of this analysis formed the basis of an engagement, facilitated by the Workplace Relations Commission. An agreement was reached by all parties in October 2018, in relation to a process of pay restoration for staff employed by these 50 pilot agencies. A further WRC engagement followed in December 2020 in relation to a final phase of 250 organisations who were identified as part of the earlier agreement.

Pay restoration was applicable to Section 39 organisations who met certain criteria, rather than types of individual workers that are employed in them. Eligible Section 39 organisations included only agencies that had service arrangements in place back in 2013 and that were still under service arrangements in 2019. Only organisations who received in excess of an agreed, specified amount from the HSE by way of the Service Level Agreement process were included.

Pay restoration is absolutely limited and only applicable to those included in the initial WRC agreement of 2018. I can also confirm that there is no scope to revisit the eligibility criteria for the process and that the process has reached a final resolution.