A THREE-DAY recruitment event aimed at luring Irish nurses home from working abroad has hired 115 people on permanent contracts.
Over 150 people were interviewed for the positions at the event. 102 were offered permanent contracts before the final event in Waterford on Thursday which saw a further 13 jobs claimed.
All told, over 190 nurses presented at the event for either career advice or interview over the course of the event, which had come in for a deal of scrutiny after just 36 people showed up for the first day.
Health Minister Simon Harris currently has 1,000 jobs in the health service to fill after the moratorium on hirings came to an end.
“I am well aware that many Irish nurses had to move to the UK and other countries to find work because of the public service recruitment moratorium,” Harris said in the wake of the event yesterday.
The good news is that we are now hiring again. The attendance over the last three days is evidence that nurses want to work in our health system which is very encouraging.
Nurses who decide to move back to Ireland will get a €1,500 relocation package.
The HSE’s national director for HR Rosarii Mannion meanwhile said the event was aimed at sending “out the clear message that the HSE is open for recruitment again following the period of austerity we have come through over the last number of years”.
The 115 nurses hired over the course of the event is an improvement on the 88 that were hired on foot of last year’s Bring Them Home campaign which similarly targeted Irish nurses working abroad.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say