Scottish Ambulance Service
I am going to publish their reply tomorrow along with my thoughts on what the SAS has to say - but in the meantime here's a reminder of what I was asking the SAS about - their policy on 'rest breaks'.
Is it all a fuss about nothing - or is there a genuine issue at stake?
Log in tomorrow - and decide for yourself.
Fingers and Pulses (October 12th 2011)
As ever the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) has its finger on the national pulse - here's what the SAS says about emergency 999 calls and rest breaks - a topic which has been hitting the news headlines recently.
"Rest breaks
We work hard to ensure that staff are appropriately rested, monitor this very closely. Given that we are an emergency service, this can at times be challenging. Rest breaks are managed carefully to ensure the minimum impact upon availability of resources. Breaks for crews are staggered throughout the day and resources are moved around to ensure there is cover. This can be most challenging in rural stations where there may only be one or two ambulances on shift and, if necessary, resources will be strategically moved several miles to a midpoint from another station to provide cover during a rest period.
The current rest break policy for ambulance services was introduced by the UK Government as part of its Agenda for Change pay modernisation programme in 2004. Under the terms of the policy, ambulance crews are entitled to an uninterrupted break during their operational shift.
In Scotland, ambulance crews are offered the opportunity to ‘opt out’ of the policy, for which they are given an annual payment of £250 and paid a further £5 for each time that they are disturbed during a break.
The Scottish Ambulance Service is in ongoing dialogue with government to seek a solution to the challenges that exist in complying with this policy."
Yes, you guessed correctly - this is the very same statement that has been on the SAS web site for months.
Not a word is said about the recent intervention of Scotland's health secretary - Nicola Sturgeon - who has banged heads together and imposed a temporary solution - which is aimed at protecting people's lives.
Here's a post from the blog site last week.
Not About Money (October 6th 2011)
I've written a few articles about the ambulance service 'rest breaks' dispute recently - here's a previous post from 25 September 2011.
The trade unions have been telling us all for months that the dispute was not about money - yet last night news came through that a settlement has been reached.
And do you know what broke the deadlock - money - a measly £50.
The Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) has made an improved offer which doubles - from £50 to £100 - the payment made to ambulance workers for interrupting their rest breaks - and responding to emergency 999 calls.
So if an extra £50 on the table has brokered a settlement - how can anyone say that the dispute was not about money in the first place?
I think we should be told - but so far the SAS has failed to provide the public with any answers - though a statement will be made later today in the Scottish Parliament.
Money, Money, Money (September 25th 2011)
Two more trade unions - Unison and Unite - have joined the GMB in rejecting a new pay deal - that would require Scottish ambulance crews to respond to emegency 999 calls - during their rest breaks.
The unions all say that the dispute is not about pay - and all three unions recommended acceptance of the new pay deal - by their members.
But the GMB, Unison and Unite were all rebuffed - which speaks volumes about the leadership of the trade unions - unless something else is going on behind the scenes.
If the dispute is not about money - then what is the real sticking point?
Because two people - two fellow Scots - have died recently while waiting for an ambulance in circumstances which may have turned out differently - if the nearest crew had not insisted on taking an 'uninterrupted' rest break.
Some do and some don't - but what's the big deal?
The public aren't stupid - but both the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) and the trade unions are treating the public like idiots.
All three unions have voted down a second pay deal that offered personnel £4.80 a week extra to be available during breaks - with an additional payment of £50 for each occasion they are called out during that time.
To my mind the present situation is a disgrace.
The management of the SAS appear weak and confused - while the unions insist that money isn't the issue - but won't say what is.
What a way to run an emergency service.
