Nurses Association and government decide on meetings schedule

The Nurses Association of Jamaica (NAJ) and government officials have worked out a schedule of meetings aimed at determining whether the nurses can get monies owed to them by year-end. 

NAJ head, Janet Farr says her organisation worked out the schedule during a meeting yesterday afternoon involving finance minister, Dr Peter Phillips, health minister, Dr Fenton Ferguson and Minister with responsibility for the Public Service, Horace Dalley. 

She says the minister has mandated that the NAJ and the health ministry meet on Thursday to determine the actual amount of money paid to nurses since the 2013 reclassification and the amount that is still outstanding. 

Following that, Farr says the parties will meet with the finance minister again next Wednesday and a decision is expected then on whether the nurses will get their money by December 31 this year. 

Farr says the monies owed were supposed to be paid out in three parts but that process has only reached half-way. 

The nurses protested over two days last week to demand the outstanding payments as well as the intervention of the finance minister. 

Dalley has said the payment of the outstanding money is scheduled for February next year and only the finance minister could bring it forward.