The role of the IMO is to represent doctors in Ireland and to provide them with all relevant services. It is committed to the development of a caring, efficient and effective Health Service

In joining the IMO you are part of the only registered trade union representing doctors in Ireland and the only union/representative body for all doctors in Ireland. Only union members enjoy the protections afforded under the Industrial Relations Acts. The IMO has a strong track record in achieving excellent pay rates for doctors. The union is as strong as its members.

The National IR Unit represents doctors on a national basis with the government and the HSE. The Personal Cases Unit offers advice on contractual and employment matters and provides individual support to members in dealing with their employment difficulties. Both units work together to ensure continuity of service is provided to members. The IMO is well recognised as a strong advocacy organisation for patient and health issues as well as the voice of doctors in Ireland. Members are encouraged to get involved in this aspect of the work.
In addition to the core IR services the IMO provides a number of additional benefits to members which leverages from the large number of doctor members. This includes attractive financial services benefits as well as attractive additional services e.g phone deal. Contact IMO for up to date details.
The full benefits of membership can be seen in the IMO leaflet benefits of membership

As a member of the IMO you are entitled to ballot and have a say in the elections that impact on your craft group.
 

The experience of the Personal Cases Unit is that NCHD raise more queries than any other group. Since they change posts more often they regularly encounter difficulties with the system, as well as the routine queries doctors have with the HSE. It makes it so much easier to pass the issue to the IMO is who are happy to resolve it on their behalf. This is in addition to the range of other benefits of membership.

EWTD is the most pressing of issues for NCHDs that impacts on all aspects of their lives. It looks like this issue will only be addressed when the health authorities are forced to act by means of industrial action. The action will only succeed when all NCHDs join the IMO with their colleagues and let the united voice of NCHDs be heard to shout 24 NO MORE - ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. A resounding ballot of NCHDs will send the clear message that the issue needs to be addressed immediately.

On joining NCHDs can avail of the additional financial benefits of membership and in particular the IMO phone deal with free calls and texts with 3Gb of data for €20 + vat per month. In many cases the savings made on this arrangement may cover the cost of your membership.
 

IMO has been fighting to reduce the working hours of NCHDs by achieving EWTD compliance. In 2003 the launch of the Hanly Reports set out a blue print for how NCHD working hours should be reduced. The full details of the dispute are available at www.imo.ie but the promises made and agreements signed have not been honoured. When the latest deadline for the end to more than 24 hour on call, a milestone for compliance, set by the HSE for 1 June 2013 was passed the IMO NCHD has said enough is enough and the time for action is now.

No longer can patient safety be compromised nor unacceptable working hours for doctors be tolerated and the time has arrived for those responsible to be called to account. Having exhausted all options available the time has now come to bring this issue to a head by undertaking industrial action by NCHDs. The success of this action depends on the engagement of all NCHDs who work in Ireland’s hospitals.
 

Undertaking industrial action is the last option used to resolve an industrial dispute and is only taken when it has been decided that all other options have been exhausted. The council of the IMO decides if action can take place and if the action is likely to achieve its aims. They will normally consider if there is a sufficient number of members involved in the dispute and if the action is likely to succeed.

IMO council could decide not approve industrial action if it considers it is likely to fail. This could include the context of the dispute and if there were other factors that might mitigate against it. A key element in this is if the IMO does not have sufficient members willing to participate to exert sufficient pressure on the employer. On 1 July 2013 there was a number of locations where IMO membership is not sufficient to achieve successful industrial action. If membership levels in these areas did not increase it could impact on the decision.

If the IMO decides that industrial action should be taken then it is put to all the affected in the form of a ballot. This will be decided by the IMO NCHD committee which is then approved by IMO Council. Section 14 of the Industrial Relations Act 1990 prescribes certain requirements as to the holding of secret ballots and the balloting provisions contained therein are of particular importance to secondary picketing. Not only will the issue as to whether the members should picket be balloted on by the union members in the primary dispute, the union members in the secondary employment will also have to ballot.

Where industrial action is taken contrary to the results of a secret ballot there is no immunity from liability nor do those involved enjoy the right of peaceful picketing afforded by Section 11.
Failure to hold a secret ballot as prescribed makes it much easier for an employer affected to obtain a pre-trial injunction restraining the industrial action. Conversely, compliance with the statutory requirements as to secret ballots gives those engaging in a strike or other industrial action the entitlement to resist the granting of an ex-parte injunction on behalf of an employer as well as an interlocutory injunction.
 

The Industrial Relations Act 1990 made new provisions in relation to trade disputes and established an institutional framework for the conduct of industrial relations.
Immunity from prosecution is afforded to a person or persons who are involved in the organisation of industrial action provided such action is in contemplation or furtherance of a trade dispute and that certain procedures have been followed. A "trade dispute" is defined as any dispute or difference between employers and workers or between workers and workers connected with the employment or non-employment or the terms of the employment or with the conditions of employment of any person. These protections are not available to non members who participate in any action.
Industrial action may include a work to rule, an overtime ban, a strike, a picket or
a sit-in.
 

Section 11(1) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1990 deals with primary picketing and provides that:
It shall be lawful for one or more persons, acting on their own behalf or on behalf of the trade union in contemplation of a trade dispute to attend at, or where that is not practicable at the approaches to a place where their employer works or carries on business.
Only those employees who are members of an authorised trade union are entitled to picket their employer and avail of immunity from prosecution. Non-union members are not entitled to the immunity laid down in Section 11.

Employees are confined to picketing at their place of work (unless they fall within the secondary picketing exemption which is referred to below). If picketers enter the property of the place where they picket they are no longer protected by Section 11 and may be held liable for trespass or nuisance. It should also be noted that civil immunity is confined to peaceful picketing. Accordingly, excessive numbers of persons picketing may be deemed to be intimidating and may make a picket non-peaceful therefore taking it outside the protection afforded by Section 11.

The object of the picket may only be to communicate information or persuade persons not to attend work. Pickets which are not based on these two objectives fall outside Section 11. By way of example, pickets which have as their objective the persuasion of customers not to do business with the targeted business are not covered by Section 11 as here the objective is to persuade persons to do something other than not attend for work. Similarly, persuading workers of another business not to complete deliveries or not to collect products is not protected as again, the motivation is to persuade others to do something other than the only legitimate purpose for which persuasion may be used, i.e. persuasion not to attend for work

• It is the policy of the IMO that emergency care should be available to patients at all times during any form of industrial action.
•  An Industrial Action Committee would be appointed in each location should industrial action proceed. The committee should appoint a Chairperson to coordinate activities and the Chairperson should identify him/herself to Hospital Management as soon as possible thereafter.
• A definition should be agreed at an initial meeting of the Industrial Action Committee as to what constitutes routine and emergency services at the hospital / service. Routine service is normally understood to mean:

o routine theatre work;
o outpatient work;
o routine admissions for investigations;
o day care/day hospitals;
o elective admissions for the following day.