INMO welcomes decision to pay Student Nurses during pandemic

By Conor Brummell

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) have been lobbying the Government to pay Student Nurses and Midwives working on the frontline during the Covid-19 pandemic. In a statement released online on the 16th of October, the INMO warned that students working on the frontlines in hospitals were “being exploited” and highlighted that many of them “on placements in hospitals across Ireland were facing additional Covid risks and were effectively being asked to work as staff for no pay.”

As well as this, student Nurses and Midwives working in hospitals have suffered income loss, as they are no longer able to work part-time as care assistants while studying, due to the infection risk

Photo: nationalnursesunited.org

Paddy Henry

Residents of Corrib Village have criticised a scheme by Campus Living to provide meals to self-isolating students.

The NUI Galway accommodation complex initially announced it would be offering an optional two-week meal plan to students required to isolate in line with HSE guidelines

The initial four-course plan provided by campus caterer Masterchefs amounted to €24 a day.

Students criticised the cost of the plan branding it as extortionate, one claiming that it took advantage of students

“I think that it’s taking advantage of students that are already in a very frightening and worrying situation. They knew that situations like this would arise and chose to extort students instead of helping them through it,” said one resident of the complex

of working in a care home while also on placement in a hospital. In the same statement from the INMO, the group said that, “Before their final year internship, most student nurses and midwives get either nothing or an allowance of just €50.79 per week. A HSE scheme to pay many students healthcare assistant salaries was used at the start of the pandemic in March, but it is no longer operating,” and that, “Despite INMO meeting with Department Officials to discuss the issue, no progress [had] been made.”

A final year Nursing Student from Galway, Aoife*, spoke to SIN about the issues around not being paid on placement before the Government’s announcement. She preceded the

* Name changed

Campus Living, who run the University’s two on-campus facilities Corrib and Goldcrest Village said that they were continuing in their efforts to support students.

In a statement Campus living said that they would continue in their efforts to support students, telling SIN;

“We are supporting our students providing welfare telephone checks and other measures. We were dealing with mainly international students who hadn’t already shopped. A dinner only option may be more affordable for students.“

They also revealed that they were providing students with information on alternative options for students should they need to isolate, including a delivery service from the NUI Galway pharmacy for emergency situations.

The price of the plan has since been lowered to €17.50 per day over a 10-day period, with a dinner only option for €8

conversation by saying she is in the fortunate position not to have to pay rent, as she is staying at home this year. “I don’t have it as bad as others, thankfully, but still we’re not getting paid. A lot of us have had to give up our part-time jobs to do placement, which isn’t fair as most students have to pay rent and afford living costs.”

“This has been an issue before the pandemic started. We have been expected to do unpaid placements every year from first year despite sometimes doing as much as qualified nurses. You could be helping the nurses on the ward do their rounds, be administrating drugs to patients under their supervision, and working as a health care assistant (HCA) on twelve-hour shifts, but you’re doing it completely unpaid,” she continued. which students have argued is still too high.

Students welcomed the revised meal plan but claimed that it should still be lowered further.

“‘I’m glad to hear that they’ve reduced it, although €245 is still very high for two weeks of food for a student. Maybe €15 would be a bit more reasonable at about a fiver a meal.”

Speaking to SIN, NUI Galway Student’s Union’s Welfare and Equality officer Róisín Nic Lochlainn condemned the meal plan and accused the accommodation providers of taking advantage of students.

“I think it’s disgraceful how far removed from reality do the University and the accommodation providers need to be to think that any student can afford that let alone during a pandemic.

“When you think about it and you put it into context the €250 that has been awarded to every student from the government is less than what Corrib Village

“You’re told that you’re learning and therefore you shouldn’t be paid. The problem with that attitude is that you are working too, whilst also doing college assignments, and it is exhausting. So many student Nurses get burnt out because of this and get physically sick near the end of placement because they are so run-down.

“You then begin to feel guilty because you can’t do nice things with the money you have, like buy a coffee or treat yourself to something new, because there isn’t more money coming in at the end of the week. I don’t understand how anyone expects us to have the time to decompress on top of all of this- it feels like we are being used,” she stated.

The coronavirus pandemic has raised further safety issues for student nurses, which Aoife says worries her a lot. “When on clinical placement, student nurses aren’t supposed to be on Covid wards because they would be putting themselves at unnecessary risk. However, it depends on staff shortages, and I’ve been told Student Nurses could be drafted in to help in Covid wards if needed.

“Obviously when you sign up to do a degree in Nursing, you can’t pick and choose what you’re going to do on placement. But at the same time, when it is unpaid and you are at risk, it is disheartening. We’ve to use public transport to get to placement; we have to be in the community to get groceries. You begin to hate coming out of placement, because you don’t know what you might have picked up,” she said. were originally charging for quarantine food for some of our most vulnerable students. This is what you call taking advantage of vulnerable students during a pandemic at its finest.

“They were able to pay student nurses at the start of the pandemic, why can’t they pay us now? Everyone can see the work we have been doing and qualified nurses on the wards are grateful for the extra hands. It just doesn’t make sense how it hasn’t been done yet, and they need to stop talking about it and just pay us for the work we are doing.”

“You then see the Government coming up with hair-brained schemes like paying influencers on Tik Tok something like twenty-thousand euro to tell people things they already know (like wearing a mask, or washing their hands) when there is student nurses on the front line at risk and unpaid. How can the Government not see how wrong it is not to pay student nurses?” she finished angrily.

It was announced on the 26th of October, however, that the Government would pay student nurses and midwives for their contributions on placements. INMO General Secretary, Phil Ní Sheaghdha, welcomed the decision, saying that, “This is a really welcome step from the government. It is good news for the students, who will now be paid for their work on the frontlines.

“It’s also good news for the wider health service. These are dedicated, talented, hard-working people who are keen to help in the global fight against Covid-19. Taking them on as paid staff not only values their work but offers them clear protections as employees.

“We will now engage with the government to determine the detail of this announcement, particularly on ensuring that students’ academic progression

Corrib Meal plan leaves bad taste in student’s mouths

isn’t harmed by the crisis,” she finished.

“We condemn it and we think that it should be as cheap as possible and the other cheaper alternatives should be advertised to students first and foremost.”

Students furious over level 5 lockdowns, as #EducationForAll trends on Twitter

By Conor Brummell

It was announced last month that college campuses would remain open under level 5 restrictions in Ireland, as Minister for Higher Education, Research and Innovation Simon Harris stated they would be deemed as essential services.

The news led to students to express their anger and frustration about the price of Higher-Level Education, as well as highlighting the lack of supports and protections the Government has put in place for students who have paid for rental accommodations in college cities.

The hashtag #EducationForAll went viral after a series of questions from Sinn Féin’s Higher Education spokesperson Rose Conway-Walsh were posed to Minister Simon Harris in Leinster House.

The issues Rose Conway-Walsh highlighted were the problems facing third level students in Ireland, particularly in relation to accommodation, college fees and financial uncertainties because of Covid-19.

A final year denominated Psychology student from the United States told SIN that the Coronavirus pandemic has left her in a precarious situation. “We were advised to come back to campus, and I had to make the initial decision against their recommendation because I could not afford to stay in Galway if my classes were going to be cancelled,” she said.

The same student is working full-time in the USA to afford rent, and she says that this has added to her worries.

“So now I am suddenly paying €12,750 in tuition for online lectures that I cannot even attend live because it is often 4-5am for me. I have to rely on the college to give me reliable information and communicate with me. However, I have sent emails to three different lecturers in the past couple of weeks with little response back, and it is incredibly stressful,” she continued.

“The college needs to realise that they are creating so much unnecessary stress for students. They need to listen to us and realise that we do not deserve what essentially feels like a punishment for not being able to be in Galway or on campus.

“It’s frustrating for people like me who are paying to take classes from 4,000 miles away, and who are unable to utilise campus at all,” she finished.

Domestically, a student from Offaly also expressed her woes about renting a private house that she signed a twelve-month lease for in June, and because of restrictions, has only been able to spend two weeks in Galway.

“I feel completely let down. I work in an essential service, so I have to be home every weekend, which means I can’t stay in the house I’m paying for, for the six weeks like we are being encouraged to do. I have to work to pay for this accommodation that I can’t even use. We need more communication and support; we cannot be left to fend for ourselves.”

A first- year Podiatric Nursing student expressed her fury over the decision to keep colleges open, as now she will have to travel from Tipperary to Galway to attend on-campus lectures.

“I’m going to have to get public transport to and from Galway two-three days a week and leave my house when the advice is clearly not to do so. I’ve no choice but to do so, and there is very little allowance for students travelling,” she told SIN.

“I’m sick of colleges constantly being forgotten about and case numbers being so high,” she finished. Conway Walsh put Minister Simon Harris under severe pressure with her questioning in the Dáil last month as a Level-5 Lockdown was announced. Photo: The Mayo News.

A final year Irish and Economics student, Cormac Gallagher, told SIN that he thinks it is a good thing the college is staying open;

“I think that it is great that the library and the likes are being left open, as some students rely on it big time for study. They have all the correct measures in place for social distancing and no one is forced to go in, so if you are weary of Covid you do not need to be there. But a lot of students will use the library.”

NUI Galway’s Students Union Welfare Officer, Róisín Nic Lochlainn, has also condemned the inaction of the Government and University in preparation for students returning to college.

“According to surveys, students have been hit the worst off financially and mentally- so why is it students who have been the most abandoned? We are calling for partial refunds in tuition fees, radical reform of SUSI and for unused accommodation to be refunded,” she said.

In response to queries about international students contacting her, Nic Lochlainn says, “I have had plenty of international students who are stuck in Galway tell me that they feel trapped, that they were lured here on the promise it would be better than their home cities and then got here for everything to go online.

“A lot of them are struggling financially and socially and we’re hearing a lot of complaints of loneliness. Online college is hard for anyone to keep up with, never mind for students abroad in a different time zone and for students stuck in a new city with a new time zone, new people, and a new culture!

“Basically, where does level 5 restrictions leave students? It leaves them with many, many unanswered questions,” she finished.

In a letter sent to all students, President of NUI Galway Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh stated that under level 5 restrictions, a range of on-campus activities would still be available for students.

“Scheduled access to the Library will continue. We are mindful of the need for other on-site study space and will continue to provide such spaces, while avoiding congregation risk consistent with Level 5 measures.

“Under Level 5, physical attendance at workplaces is only permitted for those providing and supporting the essential on-site activities outlined, where this cannot be delivered or supported remotely. Travel to and from campus for essential on-site activities in adherence with public safety guidelines is permitted under Level 5 measures,” the statement continued.

Campus accommodation is to remain open to students and staff, but no visitors will be permitted. The email also states that the University is “is refunding students who no longer require on-campus accommodation at this time,” and that they “know that many students in privately rented accommodation off campus are faced with uncertainty.”

“Last week, I joined with the Students’ Union to call on Galway’s landlords and student accommodation providers to follow the University and Menlo Park in refunding those students who no longer require accommodation in the city,” the statement from Ó hÓgartaigh finished.

Sinn Féin TD and spokesperson for Higher Education Rose Conway-Walsh spoke to SIN about her Dáil address on Tuesday night, which earned widespread acclaim from students on social media, saying that at first she was worried about the lateness of the debate, but that in fact it nearly worked out better because she got to raise a lot of her questions, and students were listening.

“It worked advantageously- a lot of students were listening, and they got involved online. There are two major issues that need addressed, and that is accommodation and the over-arching problem of online learning,” she said.

“There are only five universities currently offering students refunds for accommodation, and I would urge them to publicly reassure students that if they do not need accommodation, a refund will be fully given,” she continued.

“This is a problem that could have been avoided- the Government knew since April that there would have been problems with online-learning, and they should have been advising students not to pay for accommodation unless they were sure they needed it.”

Deputy Conway-Walsh states, however, that she feels like these matters were left until the last minute.

“When Dublin went to level 3 restrictions, the decision to move teaching online came two weeks later. There was a lack of transparency and urgency, and it seems as if it was done purposely to make sure students had paid money for accommodation. The problems with getting refunds for students in March foretold that we did not want this to happen again.

“There’s a bill being put to the Dáil during the week about a ban on evictions- which should never have been removed in the first place- but there needs to be emergency provisions for students signed off on immediately,” she declared.

“When we have exceptional circumstances such as this, students need to have the provisions in place where they can access refunds. Minister Harris needs to provide this, and if it is a case of landlords losing income, then the Government needs to pay the slack. Students and their parents are the ones paying not only the Higher-Level Education debt, but also the gap on the rental market. It’s a double-whammy.

“I don’t want to be standing up in the Dáil in six months time and speaking on this issue again as if it’s a surprise to Government. It’s not good enough for the Government to be spectators- we need more than words on these issues, we need action,” she finished.