The Starting Pay on Promotion rules as laid down by the Department of Health Circular 10/71 only allow for existing pay, exclusive of allowances, to be taken into consideration upon promotion.  Because the allowances payable to nurses have increased significantly as a result of the strike settlement, and because the normal pay on promotion rules do not provide for allowances to be taken into consideration upon promotion, a situation could arise where a nurse could be financially worse-off following promotion.

Accordingly, the Mark-time Scheme for nurses has been introduced to offset any financial loss a nurse may incur under the normal pay on promotion arrangements, and is effective from 5th November 1999.