Student nurse members of the Irish Nurses Organisation staged a sit-in protest at St James's Hospital, Dublin earlier today.
60 student nurses who turned up this morning for their immunisation against Hepatitis B and TB were refused their injections because they were not in a position to pay a €100 fee.
The INO said it would be seeking a meeting with management as it did not believe the nurses should have to pay for the vaccinations.
The INO pointed out that other Dublin hospitals such as Tallaght and the Mater do not charge student nurses for the vaccination.
The students receive no pay, however, some are entitled to a grant of around €5,000 a year.
St James's Hospital says it is providing the vaccinations at less cost than last year. The students are not employees and therefore are required to be immunised before being allowed train on the hospital grounds.
It is generally accepted that healthcare workers are at a particular risk and the Department of Health, in view of this risk, provides this immunisation free of charge to all those who work in a hospital.
The Health Service Executive has said it is a matter for each hospital as to whether it charges student nurses for vaccinations.
