Talks between health service employers and nursing unions are now described as being at a critical stage.
Both sides are now giving their reaction to proposals on nurses' pay.
Tentative progress is said to have been made on the issue of reduced working hours, but there are no specific details as yet.
The talks have been described as business like.
The latest round of negotiations, under the auspices of the National Implementation Body, began on Tuesday and focussed on the nurses' demand for a 35-hour working week.
On his way into the talks, Des Kavanagh of the Psychiatric Nurses Association said the nursing unions were putting forward five options on the pay issue and that a number of them were consistent with Government pay policy.
He said the unions would be as creative as possible in trying to find a resolution.
Liam Doran of the Irish Nurses Organisation said they were going into the talks to make progress and the nurses' unions had a sense of dentermination and commitment to the process.
Brendan Mulligan of the HSE said that there had been positive engagement between the nursing unions and employers and he hoped they could build on that progress.
