Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude to all Caredoc employees for providing valuable healthcare right around the Country. I would like to thank the Deputy for bringing this letter, which has been written on behalf of Caredoc Telephone Triage & CIT Nurses and their respective Nurse Managers, to my attention.

Caredoc is a privately owned and operated company, not a public service organisation and as such, staff employed by Caredoc do not fall under the current Public Service Agreement, Building Momentum. Building Momentum was agreed between public sector unions and the State and the agreement set out matters such as reform measures, industrial relations processes and pay rises for public servants. Only public service staff encompassed by the agreement benefitted from the pay rises.

The Independent Body Examining Additional Working Hours (HRA) in the Public Service was established under the Building Momentum public service agreement. The Independent Body recommended that working time be restored to pre-Haddington Road agreement (HRA) levels for virtually all civil servants, public servants and non-commercial State agency staff in grades where working hours were increased in 2013. Again, it is important to note that this recommendation was for public service staff only.

Caredoc is privately owned and run and the terms and conditions of employment of their staff, once in line with employment legislation, is strictly between the employer and the employee. Caredoc is not and have not been party to the Public Service Agreements.

In relation to the Pandemic Recognition Payment, eligibility criteria for the payment were set following significant consideration and consultation. I can confirm that in order to receive the recognition payment, staff must have:

• Been in COVID vaccination cohorts 1 or 2, and
• Worked ordinarily onsite in a COVID-19 exposed healthcare environment, and
• Worked for at least 4 weeks in the 1/3/2020 – 30/6/2021 period, and
• Worked in a HSE/Section 38 organisation, or one of the following:
  1. Private Sector Nursing Homes and Hospices (e.g. Private, Voluntary,Section 39 etc.);
  
  2. Section 39 long-term residential care facilities for people with disabilities, working on-site;
  
  3. Agency roles working in the HSE;
  
  4. Health Care Support Assistants (also known as home help / home care / home support) contracted to the HSE;
  
  5. Members of the Defence Forces redeployed to work in frontline Covid-19 exposed environments in the HSE;
  
  6. Paramedic staff employed by Dublin Fire Brigade to deliver services on behalf of the HSE.

Only those staff who met all of the above eligibility criteria were covered for this payment. I appreciate that many other workers, volunteers, and other citizens including those working in Caredoc provided important services during this most difficult time. It was a hard task to set out the eligibility criteria for this payment but the Government based its decision on certain aspects of all the different roles within the health sector and certain risks which eligible frontline workers faced. Undoubtedly immense efforts have been made by all healthcare staff since the onset of the pandemic which has not gone unrecognised.