Honduras: Pending wages keep the medical sector on edge

The National Commissioner for Human Rights called on the parties to resume dialogue in light of the impact on doctors and patients. The dispute between the Government and the Medical College of Honduras (CMH) reaches its fourth week of informational assemblies, without the parties having managed to resolve the main labor claims that keep the union in protest. One of the points still on the table is the payment of pending salaries. Héctor Carranza, a member of the CMH Board of Directors, stated that around 42% of doctors nationwide are still waiting to receive their remuneration. The union plans to participate in a new meeting convened by the Ministry of Health, in which the documentation related to the administrative procedures carried out to process the payments will be reviewed. While doctors and authorities maintain negotiations, patients continue to face the consequences of the measures adopted by the union. The informational assemblies have mainly affected outpatient consultations and some scheduled services, although emergency care continues. The labor conflict thus unfolds on two fronts: the doctors' demand that pending obligations be fulfilled and the need to guarantee continuity of care for the population. Carranza noted that the union has been holding informational assemblies for the fourth consecutive week and will attend the meeting convened by health authorities. The review of the administrative files will be one of the central points of the meeting, to determine the status of the processes related to the payments claimed by the professionals. The CMH has maintained in recent weeks that salary arrears and other labor commitments must be addressed before fully normalizing activities. The Ministry of Health reported on disbursements made to workers in the system and on administrative processes to address pending obligations. Among the payments reported during September are 79.9 million lempiras, equivalent to approximately USD 3.01 million, allocated to 4,258 workers for IPC and seniority bonuses. It was also reported that another 139.3 million lempiras, about USD 5.26 million, correspond to labor benefits for 6,816 officials. Health authorities reported another 139.3 million lempiras corresponding to labor benefits. The figures correspond to payments reported by the institution and do not mean that all of the CMH's claims have been resolved. The union maintains that there are still professionals awaiting remuneration and that other labor matters remain pending. In the absence of a definitive solution, doctor and congressman Carlos Umaña asked President Nasry Asfura to receive the representatives of the Medical College directly. Umaña proposed that a meeting between the president and the union's leadership could help clarify the commitments the Executive can assume and the financial conditions for addressing the demands. The proposal seeks to take the discussion to a higher political level, after several weeks of conversations between the medical representatives and health authorities. Congressman Carlos Umaña asks Nasry Asfura to meet with the leadership of the Medical College. EFE/Gustavo Amador/Archive The National Commissioner for Human Rights (Conadeh), a public rights defense body in Honduras, called on both the Government and the medical sector to resume dialogue to resolve the crisis. Ricardo López, deputy delegate of the body, noted that the Conadeh has verified a double impact: doctors claim the right to work and to payment of their remuneration, while patients need access to health services. With four weeks of informational assemblies, the meeting between the Medical College and the Ministry of Health will serve to determine whether there is concrete progress on the pending payments. The review of the administrative procedures will allow the union to know the status of the files and the actions the authorities have taken to address the claimed obligations.