NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND UNIONS OF MEDICAL AND HEALTH DEPARTMENT (Statement)

Mr Lee Choon Eng asked the Minister for Health if he will make a statement on the progress of the negotiations between the Ministry of Health and the Unions of the Medical and Health Department on the claims for revision of salaries and conditions of service submitted by the Unions since 1956.

Mr E. B. David: With your permission, Sir, I will reply to this question since the matter is within my portfolio.

At the time when Staff Unions of the Medical Department submitted salary claims in 1956, there were a number of claims in other departments also to be dealt with. It was therefore agreed with the Staff Side of the Civil Service Joint Council that all these claims would receive consideration in an agreed order of priority. In accordance with this agreement, the medical unions' claims came up for examination last year. A complete survey of all the posts in the various services affected was undertaken late last year. Following this survey the Government placed before the unions in March this year the broad outlines of its proposals and since then there have been a number of meetings and discussions. In the case of certain groups of officers, only a few matters of detail remain unsolved, whereas in other cases it is clear that an agreed settlement can only be reached after further discussion.

Mr Lee Choon Eng: Can the Chief Secretary tell us when he can expect to have all these claims settled, because it has been too long a delay since 1956?

Mr David: I have every hope, Sir, that these claims will be finally settled before the end of this year, but I must point Out that in negotiations there are two sides to the proceedings and the blame cannot be laid entirely at the door of one side.