16 September 2011
The Chief Minister, and Head of the States Employment Board, Senator Terry Le Sueur has issued the following statement regarding the recruitment and retention of nurses in the Island:
"Senior Human Resources representatives, delegated by the States Employment Board (SEB) met with the 3 nursing unions earlier this week to discuss a range of proposals agreed by SEB to attract and retain ‘hard to recruit’ specialist nurses. At the end of the meeting, all parties agreed to meet again in 2 weeks time to continue our joint discussions.
"We are disappointed that the Jersey Nursing Association (JNA) does not seem to want to engage in constructive and meaningful talks which could potentially increase States spending on nurses by almost £1 million.
"The majority of Jersey’s nurses belong to the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and the Royal College of Midwifery (RCM) and we are still confident of conducting meaningful discussions with these unions in 2 weeks time. We would expect and welcome the JNA's continued involvement in these talks.
"We remain committed to investing in the solutions that can best assist the recruitment and development of nurses in Jersey."