Sligo paramedics launch petition after HSE refuses permanent contracts

Sligo Ambulance Station has launched an online petition seeking change after the HSE refused to give almost 80 newly qualified paramedics permanent contracts, instead ordering them to reapply for their jobs.

Up until a few months ago, paramedics who completed their three-year course were automatically granted permanent contracts upon meeting all the requirements.

In a post on Facebook, Sligo Ambulance Station highlighted another concern: “Further to this these positions will be offered nationally, potentially forcing staff to uproot from families, friends and communities to work in a different part of the country, undoubtedly to a detrimental effect.”

The post continued: “The proposition is baffling and comes at a time when the service is under immense pressure with ever increasing demand daily. The prospect of losing staff, who have invested three years of their lives in education and training, has left everyone bewildered and fearful for the future.”

Their online petition on change.org has received almost 8,000 signatures since it was launched on February 28.

READ NEXT: Outrage in Leitrim after stray dog killed in hit-and-run incident

The petition further details how the 76 paramedics in question hold degrees from University College Cork, completed over three years at a taxpayer cost of approximately €15.8 million, and that 76 paramedics are enough to crew 38 ambulances.

“These 76 newly qualified paramedics, along with all the paramedics in National Ambulance Service (NAS), chose this career so that they could be there to help when people need it most. But this HSE decision effectively risks taking 38 ambulances off the road and losing 76 paramedics,” they wrote.

“Instead of offering these paramedics a permanent contract, as was done in years gone by, the HSE and NAS are forcing them to reapply, re-interview, and compete for their own job. They have been told they are not guaranteed an interview,” the post continued, further calling on the Department of Health, the HSE, and NAS to urgently reverse the decision.

“The HSE and NAS should be fighting to hold on to every paramedic, but instead they are willing to risk losing staff equivalent to taking 38 ambulances off the road,” the petition read.

The petition can be found here.

READ NEXT: Funding approved for new special classes in three Leitrim schools