Ramallah: Doctors and other staff at Nablus Speciality Hospital have warned that they will start indefinite strike action if their late salaries are not paid before Eid Al Adha.
The hospital’s management has urged the Palestinian government to pay its outstanding debts to the hospital to enable the management to keep up the workflow.
According to a statement issued by the hospital’s employees, workers have not been paid for several months. The employees have warned that the excuse that this is due to the cash crunch the management faces because of the outstanding government debts will no longer be accepted.
The employees warned that they will hold further protests and will ultimately seal off the hospital so no patient can enter if their salaries are not settled before the fall of Eid Al Adha. They said that the deadline will not be extended, given that Eid Al Adha is expected on Saturday.
Dr Abdul Rahim Ketanah, director-general of the hospital, said that he supports the fair demands of the hospital’s employees, but blames the Palestinian government for its failure to settle the hospital’s debts. The outstanding bills represent millions of shekels of work carried out by the hospital.
He urged the Palestinian government to transfer some of the outstanding debt to enable the management to pay staff salaries as per the announced deadline. He made it clear that if the government sends some money within the next 24 hours the management will be able to resolve the issue.
Private hospitals in the West Bank have been suffering a serious financial crisis due to hundreds of patient transfers from the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), which has not been able to settle any of those debts.
At present Al Maqased Charitable Hospital is on the verge of closure, although it has received some promises from the Palestinian government that it will transfer some money to ease the return of the hospital’s employees to work.
