Nurses satisfied with Cabinet’s plan to list them as civil servants

BANGKOK, May 17 (TNA) – The Temporary Employee Professional Nurse Network is satisfied with the Cabinet’s plan to list over 11,000 nurses, working under temporary contracts as civil servants. They thanked the government for the plan during the Cabinet’s meeting on Tuesday. However, they will wait for an official written approval and they will stop the move on social network, said Rungthiwa Phanomkae, a member of the network. Speaking after the Cabinet meeting yesterday, government spokesman, Lt Gen Sansern Kaewkamnerd said the Cabinet acknowledged the Public Health Ministry’s proposal to list over 11,000 contract nurses over the next three years. The first batch will be listed as civil servants this year while the rest of 8,900 positions will be granted over the next three year or about 2,900 per year. This number includes vacancies, that will replace permanent nurses, who will retire each year. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha gave a clear policy for all ministries to take sustainable approach to solve problems. The public health ministry will map out the plan on personnel management and will be forwarded to the Cabinet’s meeting next week, said the government spokesman. Earlier, the nurses threatened to resign en mass on September 30 after the Cabinet on May 9 turned down the Public Health Ministry to list more than 11,000 temporary nursing positions as civil servants, which will entitle them to better welfare and benefits. The public health ministry was asked to manage its quota and fill vacancies within the ministry first before seeking for the new quota from the Office of the Civil Servant Commission. (TNA)