Social workers in the Eastern Health Board are being threatened with imprisonment for taking part in Industrial action aimed at improving services to vulnerable children, their union, Impact, has claimed.
The union says the EHB has warned it that social workers will be in contempt of court if they fail to produce childcare reports as instructed by the health board.
As part of continuing industrial action, social workers in the EHB region have refused to implement new sections of the Child Care Act which came into force a year ago.