The HSE has asked its internal audit unit to examine the process under which staff who were in acting positions were "regularised" into higher grades.

The move follows concerns which were submitted anonymously to the Dáil Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in recent weeks regarding the extent to which staff in the HSE received upgrades.

HSE national director of human resources Ian Tegerdine told the committee that more than 2,000 personnel either had been or were in the process of being "regularised" on foot of the Haddington Road agreement with trade unions and a subsequent circular issued by the health authorities.

Robust process

A table he provided to the committee showed that this included 870 nursing staff and 584 management or administrative personnel.

“A robust process was put in place to regularise staff in line with the provisions of this HR circular,” he said.

“In light of the information cited in the anonymous letter sent to the PAC, I have requested that the Internal Audit function of the HSE undertake an audit of regularisations with a particular focus on the operationalisation of the provisions of the HR circular as a priority and a commitment has been given to complete this audit by the end of March 2015.”

Acting up

The HSE on Friday did not answer queries in relation to the new internal audit investigation.

The number of staff “regularised” in higher grades is likely to include a group of nurses who, under the agreement, were appointed to the position of senior staff nurse from July 2013.

Appointments to these posts had not been processed for a number of years previously.

The HSE circular governing the process said that people who were “regularised” in the higher grades had to have been acting up in the role on a continuous basis for at least two years.

The circular said the process should be cost neutral and should not increase the headcount of staff.

It also said substantive posts to be filled had to be vacant and that there would be no backfilling of any consequential vacancy.