Ambulance personnel who are members of the Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) will protest at Leinster House on Thursday in a dispute over union recognition.

It is part of a continuing campaign for them to join and be represented by the PNA as the union of their choice.

The PNA has also announced over 500 ambulance branch members will hold a further 24-hour national strike from 7.00am on Friday July 19th.

The strike will include paramedics, advanced paramedics and emergency medical technicians.

Peter Hughes is PNA general secretary.

He says ambulance personnel members are determined Oireachtas members will hear their message before the Dáil summer recess.

"The message is unchanged - ambulance personnel, who established their own branch within the PNA ten years ago, demand the right to be members of PNA as the union of their choice and will not be forced by the HSE to join another union that they do not want to be members of.

"While our campaign has been encouraged by the growing level of political support in Leinster House, we are calling on all Oireachtas members to support ambulance personnel in demanding a basic right for workers to join the union of their choice."

He adds: "It is a disgrace that ambulance personnel are being forced by the HSE to hold another 24 hour strike in a vital front line emergency service.

"This is a situation that these professional, highly dedicated workers have said they do not want to be in.

"However, they are left with no option in the face of an inexplicable intransigence by the HSE and a refusal to acknowledge the clearly expressed wishes of ambulance personnel to be members of, and represented by PNA".