Emergency medical technicians, paramedics, advanced paramedics, paramedic specialists and paramedic supervisors are among those set to take part in the industrial action
Ambulance workers represented by the trade union Unite have joined SIPTU members in serving notice of strike action.
The unions have notified the HSE of a work-to-rule from May 11, and 24-hour strike the following day, a 48-hour stoppage on May 19 and a 72-hour stoppage on May 26.
The National Strike Committee, comprising representatives of Unite and Siptu on the Ambulance Representative Council and local union officials, will decide on further rolling strike action from June 1.
Emergency medical technicians, paramedics, advanced paramedics, paramedic specialists and paramedic supervisors are among those set to take part in the industrial action.
The move is due to what unions say is to management’s ongoing failure to implement the 2020 ‘Roles and Responsibilities Review’. They also say that a five per cent increase recommended under the benchmarking process has not been delivered.
“These are the frontline workers who save lives every day,” said Unite general secretary Sharon Graham.
“It defies belief that they have spent six years waiting for their skills and expertise to be recognised. Our members have Unite’s total support in this fight for fair pay.”
Unite regional officer Eoin Drummey added: “Recognition of ambulance workers’ expanded roles and responsibilities has been ignored for six years, and our members have run out of patience.
“If the HSE wants to avoid strike action, it must commit to implementing the recommendations of the 2020 review immediately and without preconditions.”
In response, a HSE spokesperson said it believes the industrial action is ‘unwarranted’ and presents a ‘potential for impact on service delivery to patients’.
“This follows two years of engagement, including through the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC), which assisted the parties in developing a set of proposals aimed at resolving this dispute, which was also the subject of a subsequent Labour Court recommendation,” the spokesperson added.
“The HSE accepted both the WRC proposals and the Labour Court recommendation, demonstrating a commitment to addressing the dispute.
“Unite and SIPTU recommended the WRC proposals and the Labour Court recommendation to their members for acceptance. Both trade unions informed the HSE on 9 September 2025 that the proposals issued by the WRC, supported by a Labour Court Recommendation, were rejected in a ballot.
“The HSE met with Unite and SIPTU on 17 February 2026 and confirmed it was committed to entering further discussion on the substantive elements of the WRC proposals, which included new pay scales for relevant grades that recognise past, present and future transformative change, subject to the financial envelope approved by the Department of Health and with the consent and sanction of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. This proposal was rejected by Unite and SIPTU, who immediately advised of their intention to ballot for industrial action.”
The HSE remains committed to engagement through the dispute resolution processes set out in the Public Service Agreement 2024 – 2026.
<
Leave a Reply