Irish public-sector pay talks set for Monday as Martin calls for productivity gains

Ireland’s Government and public-sector unions agreed on Saturday, 17 October, to begin formal pay talks at the Workplace Relations Commission in Dublin on Monday, 19 October. The agreement follows a national strike involving more than 300,000 workers and opens negotiations over pay, living costs and the cost of a new deal to the state.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin said any agreement must be affordable, improve productivity in public services and protect lower-paid workers. He also called for ‘value for money’, while saying the range of jobs covered by the public service would have to be addressed in negotiations.

Pay claims and the cost of a new agreement

RTÉ reported that the Budget allocated €1.2 billion toward a new agreement, while unions believe a deal could cost €2 billion. Martin declined to say whether the Government would spend more than the budgeted amount. No pay increase or overall cost has been agreed.

How the formal talks were arranged

The decision to enter formal talks followed meetings on Saturday involving independent chair Kevin Foley, Irish Congress of Trade Unions general secretary Owen Reidy and Government representative Oonagh Buckley, secretary-general of the Department of the Environment. RTÉ reported that the three confirmed the agreement shortly before 9pm that day.

Their statement also said trust and confidence in public-sector industrial relations needed rebuilding. RTÉ reported that unions maintain some commitments made under the previous agreement were not honoured, a dispute the negotiators will carry into the new process.

The scheduled talks follow strike action the previous Wednesday that involved staff across the country. For those workers, the immediate change is the move from a suspended second stoppage to formal bargaining; the size and structure of any pay award are still to be negotiated.