Jimmy Somers, Called for resolution to nurses' dispute
The leader of the country's largest union has issued a personal appeal to the Taoiseach not to allow the nationwide nurses' strike to go ahead later this month. SIPTU President, Jimmy Somers, said Bertie Ahern should consider whether he wanted to push the nurses towards strike amid allegations of tax evasion and fraud by pillars of society.
The president of SIPTU, Jimmy Somers, has called for any money recovered as a result of the Ansbacher and DIRT tax investigations to be paid as a special tax-free lump sum to welfare recipients and compliant tax payers. Mr Somers was speaking at the opening of his union's biennial conference in Killarney, at which he also urged the Government not to allow the nurses' strike to go ahead later this month. In his address to the opening session of SIPTU's biennial conference in Killarney this morning, Mr Somers, urged the sides to move towards a settlement "sooner rather than later". Thousands of non-nursing hospital staff are due to consider a ballot in support of the nurses.
Jimmy Somers said he believes nurses not alone have a moral entitlement to better pay and conditions, they also have an economic justification in terms of supply and demand. He made an appeal to the government not to allow the all out strike to go ahead, exactly a fortnight from today, putting nurses, patients and the public at large, through "the torment of an unnecessary dispute".
This appears to be a last stitch attempt to bring the two sides, unions and health service employers together before the momentum towards the picket line becomes irreversible. However there are fresh indications this morning that the nurses strike could widen quickly if it goes ahead. Thousands of non-nursing hospital staff are expected to decide early next week whether or not to ballot on action in support of the nurses.
