Opposition parties threaten to miss Dáil sitting during public sector strike

Opposition parties in Ireland said on Thursday, 8 October, that they would not cross a picket line at Leinster House for the Dáil’s planned 14 October sitting during a public sector strike. The Dáil’s Business Committee ended its meeting without agreeing next week’s business, leaving the sitting and its scheduled votes unresolved.

Sinn Féin whip Pádraig Mac Lochlainn said his party’s TDs and staff would not walk past striking workers. Labour whip Duncan Smith said Labour would not cross a picket line either. Their statements set out the parties’ intentions; whether the chamber will sit depends in part on a pending decision about staffing during the strike.

Why the 14 October Dáil sitting is in doubt

More than 100,000 public sector workers are due to take action next Wednesday, according to RTÉ. Staff at the Houses of the Oireachtas may be among those affected. In a note to TDs and senators last week, Clerk of the Dáil Elaine Gunn warned that Dáil and Seanad sittings, as well as committee hearings, could be affected, RTÉ reported.

The Houses of the Oireachtas is seeking a derogation that would allow staff to work and facilitate sittings during the action, according to RTÉ. The broadcaster said a decision was expected by Friday evening, 9 October. The Irish Examiner reported that advice was being sought on possible exemptions. Neither report established that an exemption for next Wednesday had been granted.

Despite the uncertainty, a spokesperson for Government Chief Whip Mary Butler told RTÉ that she was scheduling Dáil business as normal for Wednesday. The Irish Examiner reported that Smith had urged Butler to reconsider. The difference between that timetable and the opposition parties’ stated position remained unresolved after the committee meeting.

What happens to the Dáil’s weekly votes

Wednesday is normally reserved for the Dáil’s weekly votes, the Irish Examiner reported. If the chamber does not sit on 14 October, the voting block would have to move to another day. The Business Committee had not agreed next week’s business by the end of Thursday’s meeting, so the reports do not establish a new date for those votes.

The committee is due to meet again on Monday, 12 October, to seek a solution. Mac Lochlainn said members would then seek an update on whether there would be a derogation for Dáil sittings. The Irish Examiner reported that one committee member thought several meetings might be needed. For now, the questions are whether staff can work, whether the sitting proceeds and where the votes will fit if it does not.

How the pay dispute reached the Dáil

The threatened disruption comes amid a dispute over public service pay talks. In a Dáil exchange on 30 September, Social Democrats TD Sinéad Gibney described work-to-rule action by public sector workers and said a strike was planned for 14 October. Labour TD Duncan Smith said workers wanted the Government to engage on pay. The exchange shows that the planned strike was being debated before Thursday’s argument over parliamentary business.

In that exchange, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the Government wanted to negotiate a pay agreement and that the minister for public expenditure had formally invited unions to talks. He argued there was no need for strike action and said the forthcoming budget would include a significant provision. Those were the Government’s stated positions, not evidence that the unions had agreed to call off action.

RTÉ reported that Public Expenditure Minister Jack Chambers appealed for dialogue about a new sector pay deal in Tuesday’s budget speech, but that workers were still due to take action next week. The parliamentary dispute has a narrower immediate consequence: unless the staffing question and timetable are resolved, the 14 October sitting and the usual Wednesday votes remain in doubt.