KOCHI: The Catholic Church has decided to revise the pay scale of nurses serving in church-run hospitals. A decision in this regard was taken at a joint meeting of the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council’s (KCBC) Labour Commission, Health Commission and directors of various hospitals under the church.
Issues prevailing in health care, including the ongoing agitation by nurses in the private sector demanding decent pay, were reviewed at the meeting chaired by KCBC Labour Commission chairman Bishop Alex Vadakumthala. It was observed a reasonable pay was the right of nurses, considering the spiralling cost of living.
“It has been decided to frame a separate pay scale as the decision by government- appointed committees regarding minimum pay for nurses is likely to be delayed,” said KCBC deputy secretary Fr Varghese Vallikkattu. “A 11-member committee has been constituted to frame the pay scale. The revised salary will be disbursed from August.”
All health care institutions under the church have implemented minimum pay scale for nurses coming into force on January 1, 2013. Some organisations offer a salary higher than the minimum pay. “KCBC’s human resource policy, prepared with an aim to ensure legal and model management, will be implemented in all organisations,” Vallikkattu said. KCBC Labour Commission secretary Fr George Thomas, Health Commission secretary Fr Simon Pallupetta, Catholic Hospital Association of India president Fr Thomas Vaikathuparampil and others were present.