Richard Boyd Barrett: Calls out U-turn on Paramedic Contracts
Richard Boyd Barrett addressed the Dáil about newly qualified paramedics who were promised permanent HSE contracts but now face a competitive reapplication process. He urged the Taoiseach to intervene, described the decision as "shameful", and said that commitments to trainees must be realised.
Protest and petition
A protest took place outside the Dáil of mostly young, newly qualified paramedics who gathered a petition over the weekend. The petition has about 10,000 signatures from people who completed degrees while working part-time for the HSE.
Promises of permanent contracts
He said the recruits were brought in through a recruitment campaign in late 2022 and were given the clear understanding they would be offered permanent contracts. That assurance, he added, was reiterated as recently as December before the requirement to reapply competitively was suddenly introduced.
Impact on trainees and families
Barrett said the affected paramedics are "absolutely gutted" and face potential relocation away from where their families and children are based, with no guarantee of continuing employment with the HSE. He called the treatment of these young people "a shameful way to treat these young people."
Speaker's involvement and next steps
He said he will speak to the Minister for Health to get the full background on the National Ambience Service and the related arrangements. He noted the professionalisation of first responders and emergency technicians has been important in reducing deaths and delivering early interventions, and said he had been involved in establishing the National Ambience, Pre-Ambience Emergency Care Council and has an interest in the issue.
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Taoiseach, outside the Dáil today, there was a protest of a large number of mostly young people who are newly qualified paramedics. You may have seen they gathered a petition over the weekend. There's about 10,000 people have signed it because they, for the last three years, have been doing a degree to become paramedics. They've also been working part-time for the HSE. When they were brought in through a recruitment campaign in late 2022, into this degree course and into the part-time work, they were given the clear understanding. They would be given permanent contracts. And now, and they were told this was reiterated as recently as December of last year. And all of a sudden, they've had the rug pulled out from under them, and they've been told they have to reapply in a competitive competition for their own jobs. They're absolutely gutted, and they're being told now, having believed that they would be working relatively close where their children go to school and so on, they could be sent to another side of the country and not even get a job at the HSE. This is a shameful way to treat these young people. Can you intervene on their behalf? Thanks, Keir. On the National Ambience Service, I will talk to the Minister for Health to get the full background on that. And if people have, if commitments were made to people, they need to be realised. It's a pity because it's the one area that we've made great progress on in terms of the professionalisation of first responders and in terms of emergency technicians, paramedic technicians. It's a very, very important area that has done a lot to reduce death and get early interventions prior to someone being transported to a hospital. It's a critical, critical... I was involved in establishing it myself in terms of National Ambience, Pre-Ambience Emergency Care Council, so it's something I have an interest in. So, it's something I have an interest in.
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