Labour Court says HSE must process Unite porters’ grading claim within six months

The Labour Court recommended that HSE Dublin North East conclude Unite’s claim to upgrade seven porters at Louth County Hospital through the agreed national evaluation process within six months. The recommendation was signed on 26 April 2010. Unite said the porters performed clerical, security and patient-care duties in addition to portering, and that local management had agreed to upgrade them from Band 4 to Band 3. HSE Dublin North East said they were correctly graded and should use the national job evaluation process. The Court said the claim had to be handled under the grading structure agreed by the unions and the HSE. It recommended that the process reach a conclusion within six months; if it did not, the Court would reconsider the dispute and issue a final recommendation on its substance.