The State government has asked nurses’ organisations in private hospitals to put their agitation plan on hold in view of the alarming spread of dengue across the State and in the context of the proactive steps that have been taken to ensure an amicable settlement between the management and on the pay and services conditions of paramedics.
Labour Minister T.P. Ramakrishnan, who expressed the government’s stand on the proposed strike from Monday called by a section of the nurses in private hospitals, said that the move to start an agitation in an essential service such as the hospital sector would end up putting patients to great hardship and throw normal life out of gear.
“People working this sector know the value of life. Hence, the government believes that the organisations will call off their stir plans in this context. The government is going all out to bring the managements and the unions to an agreement,” he said.
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Noting the agitation call in Thrissur by a section of the nurses from June 19, Mr. Ramakrishnan said the government was seized about the issues related to pay revision. The Industrial Relations Committee for Private Hospitals had been asked to give its recommendations and it had by now submitted its report.
He had convened a conciliatory conference on the basis of this development. It had been decided to hold another meeting of the IRC on June 27, besides holding further talks with representatives of nurses’ unions, who were asked to give in writing their demands. The unions had responded positively to the government request to defer their strike plan till June 27.
It was unfortunate that one section of the nurses was now backtracking at a crucial time when smooth running of hospital services was important. The move to go head with the stir will also affect the attempts at bringing in a consensus. He wanted the hospital managements to adopt a positive stand on pay revision that would find favour with the unions.
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