Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

‘Scandalous’ claims that north-east paramedic worked 36-hour shift

Post Thumbnail

Strike action could hit ambulances across the north and north-east of Scotland after union bosses confirmed they will ballot staff over what they have called “scandalous” and “dangerously long” working hours.

Unite said paramedics determined to serve the public were having their “goodwill and dedication exploited” by an overstretched service and said the implications could be “very serious”.

While shifts should last for 12 hours, the union claimed one Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) employee in the region had worked three times this, while another had been on shift for 23 hours.

Papers will now be sent out to around 230 workers in the north division, which includes Grampian and the Highlands and islands, in a consultative ballot that will gauge the feelings of workers on whether to strike.

Last night a paramedic source said that the 23-hour continuous shift had been undertaken by a crew based in Lairg in the Highlands, while the 36-hour shift was worked in Tomintoul in Moray.

He added that there were around 20 vacancies in the north despite the announcement in 2013 that an extra 150 ambulance technicians would be recruited across Scotland to provide safe levels of cover.


>> Keep up to date with the latest news with The P&J newsletter


Changes to the way paramedics work were introduced following the outrage triggered by the death of 33-year-old Mandy Mathieson, who suffered a cardiac arrest at her home at Tomintoul in 2010.

The village depot is just 800 yards away but trainee technician Owen McLauchlan chose not to respond because he was on a meal break.

Last night dad Charles Mathieson said: “I think there have been some lessons learned since 2010 but my own view is that all public services are underfunded.

“The services have to struggle on and nobody realises the pressure they are under until something goes wrong. “

Ms Mathieson did not receive help from emergency services for nearly half an hour and was pronounced dead by an ambulance crew sent from Grantown, 15 miles away.

Later it emerged that the delay itself did not contribute to her death, but her family led demands to resolve the working hours issue.

Last night, Tommy Campbell of Unite said that ambulance crews in the north were facing “a crisis” and that the results of a ballot could be “very serious” for the service.

He said: “It is a national scandal that some workers in the area covered by Highland and Islands and Grampian have worked up to thirty-six hours.

“This is unfortunately not an unusual incident and there are many other examples of paramedics working dangerously long hours.

“Unite members, in their determination to serve the public, have had their goodwill and dedication exploited.

“For this reason, Unite will now move to a consultative ballot on industrial action which we hope focuses the minds of Scottish Ambulance Service management.”

Alexander Burnett, the Conservative MSP for Aberdeenshire West, said that the service in the north and north-east was “badly overstretched”.

He said: “It has been clear for some time that the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) in the north and north-east is badly overstretched.

“I think most people would find it incredible that a paramedic would be forced to work for 36 hours straight.

“The SAS, and indeed the SNP government, must address these issues as a matter of urgency. It should not require the threat of strike action from the unions to get management and government ministers to sit up and take notice.”

A Scottish Ambulance Service spokesman said: “We are continuing to engage positively with our partners at Unite as we are keen to listen to and respond to any concerns raised by our staff or their representatives.

“We have long-standing arrangements in place to ensure we put patients at the heart of our decision making, whilst balancing the needs and wellbeing of our staff – who do a fantastic job day in, day out caring for patients across Scotland.

“We take this issue extremely seriously, which is why we are continuing to meet with staff and work closely with them to help resolve any issues raised.

“We look forward to working in partnership with our union colleagues to provide the very best service to our patients and staff.”