Pickets outside Kilkenny and Carlow ambulance depots as strike begins

PICKETS have been placed outside ambulance depots in Kilkenny and neighbouring Carlow today as staff stage a 24-hour strike.

The pickets were put in place from 7am.

Members of the National Ambulance Service Representative Association, which are are part of the Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA), said they will only deal with calls for life-threatening and potentially life-threatening emergencies.

Unions spokesperson Derek Cunningham told KilkennyNow.ie: “There will be pickets outside ambulance stations in Kilkenny and Carlow – this is going to be a nationwide strike.”

The Health Services Executive (HSE) last night said army ambulances and staff are being drafted in to provide cover for patients today.

Defence Forces’ ambulances and trained crew will be based in the east and southern regions.

The strike is due to a long-running row over trade union representation rights and the deduction of union subscriptions at source.

Ambulance staff represented by the trade union Siptu are not involved.

A quarter of all ambulance personnel will not be available for a 24-hour period.