Updated | Nurses’ union wants more nurses and midwives on casual basis

Updated with ministry's reaction 4:13pm

The Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses has complained that a selection process for new nursing and midwifery recruits has not yet started.

The union announced it will proceed with industrial action unless casual nurses are not installed by October.

160 interviews of nurses and midwives are expected to take place, followed by the process leading for the issuing of the Public Service Commission's appointments and other bureaucratic steps which will eventually take months for the employment of the recruits, the MUMN said.

"Our country cannot afford this situation. Considering the slow process being used, it is likely that such new nurses and midwives will be employed either in December or January 2014. That is not acceptable to MUMN in view of the substantial amount of shortages of nurses in all hospitals, the elderly residence and health centres," the union said.

The MUMN said that nurses and midwives previously used to be employed immediately after the issuing of their university results on a casual basis, at the same time that the whole process of recruitment takes its course. "This mechanism is provided in the Constitution of Malta where it states that employment on casual basis can be effected from two months before of the issuing of a call for application for permanent employment," the union said.

"With the employment of such nurses the directives issued at Gzira health centre can eventually be lifted. With this employment on casual basis, the level-one services in Mount Carmel Hospital, the numerous vacancies in Mater Dei Hospital, Karen Grech Rehabilitation Hospital and Gozo General Hospital can be addressed."

The MUMN said that if left for months without work, the new recruits could easily seek alternative employment overseas.

"MUMN cannot understand how such an essential workforce, which is so lacking in this country, is not employed when the official results from the university have been issued, as it was done in the past by the Health Division."

The union has appealed to the government to employ nursing professionals on a casual basis.

"Unfortunately the present health ministry decided to ignore MUMN's advicee. If such a new recruitment is not effected by the month of October, MUMN will have no option but to plan a strategy of protests and other actions will have to be considered."

In a reaction, the health ministry said the lack of nurses was the cause of several factors.

"Last year, the recruitment call was made in March but this was not repeated this year because of the general elections. Irrespectively, the ministry managed to identify the necessary funds for the recruitment of all nursing graduates this year, despite the absence of a budget for recruitment. In the past, nurses were left for months' waiting for their employment."

The ministry said two recruitment calls were issued this year in June, and in August.

"The selection process for hundreds of nurses must take its natural course. We're doing all we can to hasten the process within the public service's recruitment rules."

The ministry said a new recruitment call will be issued in the beginning of 2014.