THE Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has urged its members to vote to go on strike in a dispute about understaffing and safety in the health service.

The nurses’ union has said that should the vote pass, there would be nationwide 24-hour work stoppages in hospitals.

According to INMO, “members would provide only a minimum of lifesaving care and emergency response teams”.

The union says that low pay is making it impossible to recruit and retain enough nurses and midwives, which risks patient safety, contributes to overcrowding and limits hospital capacity.

Voting will run for under four weeks until December 13 in offices, hospitals and workplaces around Ireland.

The union has over 40,000 nurse and midwife members, and all INMO members employed by the public health service have a right to vote.

INMO General Secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha said: “This is all about safety. Nurses and midwives do not want to go on strike. We just want to do our jobs and care for patients. Yet understaffing means we can no longer do that.

“The government are ignoring voices from the frontline. Without a pay rise for nurses and midwives, we will never be able to recruit enough staff for a safe health service.

“Going on strike is not a decision we take lightly, but we have been left with no option and are now forced down this path. Nurses and midwives are united and will stand up for our professions and our patients.”