Almost 4% of social workers to retire this month
Minister for Children Frances Fitzgerald said today that almost 4% of social workers are set to retire at the end of the month.
Minister Fitzgerald said that 37 new care staff began working in the Health Service Executive in 2011, taking the total number of social workers to 1,220.
A further 60 staff, who were recruited towards the end of last year, are in the process of taking up their posts around the country.
However, Minister Fitzgerald said that at least 45 social workers will leave the HSE under the public sector retirement scheme.
"That's about 3.7% of the total number of social workers and I would expect that in any given year you would have a 1-2% changeover of staff, probably," she said.
"That figure of course is subject to change between now and the end of February,
"The immediate management of this will mean that we will have to draw on local flexibilites available under the Croke Park Agreement."
