MANAGEMENT AT THE National Ambulance Service has agreed not to proceed with the proposed outsourcing of inter-hospital ambulance transfers to a private provider after engagement with trade union Unite, the union said.

Unite, which represents workers at the NAS, had last week prepared to ballot its members to determine whether they would be taking industrial action in protest of the proposed outsourcing. 

Inter-hospital transfers in the greater Dublin area were to outsourced to a private operator. The union said it was concerned that given the lack of consultation with the unions in initiating a tender for these proposed transfers, its operations across the rest of the country could soon follow.

Unite and Siptu had called on the service to cease outsourcing and instead increase staffing levels.

General secretary of Unite Sharon Graham said, “Management’s decision to reverse their outsourcing proposals is a victory for workers and patients and was only secured due to the threat of industrial action.”

The proposed outsourcing would have contravened the Public Service Agreement (PSA) and threatened both patient safety and workers’ terms and conditions, Unite added.

Unite regional officer Eoin Drummey said the NAS should now be in “no doubt” regarding the determination of workers and unions to ensure ambulance services are provided in-house. 

The HSE has been asked for comment.