Posted on Monday, 22nd June 2009 by admin
DUBLIN, April 21 (Reuters) – Ireland’s health sector is considering axing up to 1,700 jobs and introducing a ban on recruitment and promotions to cut costs, the state broadcaster reported on Tuesday.
RTE, citing a confidential circular sent to senior managers at Ireland’s Health Service Executive (HSE), said the HSE planned to cut nearly 1,000 jobs this year, the bulk of them in administration.
It was also considering a proposal to cut 700 nursing positions, RTE said.
No one from the HSE was immediately available to comment on the report. A spokesman from the Department of Health declined to comment directly on the circular, but said the government was not planning any forced job cuts.
“The government has already announced a moratorium on public sector recruitment,” he said. “There is no issue of involuntary redundancies.”
The HSE, which employs over 130,000 people and has an annual budget of 14.7 billion euros, is one of the biggest drains on Ireland’s national finances, which are buckling under the strain of a burst property bubble and the second straight year of recession.
Earlier this month, the government unveiled a five-year austerity programme of tax increases and spending cuts to tackle the worst budget deficit in Europe.
Unions representing medical staff said they would oppose any attempt to cut jobs.
Read more: Irish health sector proposes 1,700 job cuts-report
Tags: Health, Ireland, job cuts
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