HSE West demands €65m cut
Health service cuts of up to €65m will have to be imposed between now and the end of the year in the west -- despite major savings being achieved in recent months.
However, the threatened number of job losses among temporary staff has been reduced from 320 to 200, it has been revealed.
The new figures emerged after talks between unions and the HSE West ended at the Labour Relations Commission last night.
They were negotiating how the HSE West would deal with a deficit which was over €90m in June. They were told €24.5m has been shaved off this since then but urgent action is needed to curtail spending to cut the remaining €65m deficit.
A spokeswoman for the HSE said last night talks will now resume at local level to work out how savings can be achieved in particular parts of HSE West.
The emphasis is on reducing hours worked to make savings so the 200 temporary jobs at stake may be saved. Individual workers may be earning less, but they may keep their jobs.
- Anne Marie Walsh and Eilish O'Regan
Irish Independent
