Unions to seek joint approach on public service pay

Public service trade unions are to try develop a co-ordinated approach to seeking improvements in pay and conditions for about 300,000 workers on the State’s payroll.

Leaders of the public service committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions will continue with meetings with individual constituent unions in advance of drawing up the new approach.

The move was decided at the annual meeting of the public service committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, which took place in Dublin on Monday.

While the aim is to develop a unified stance, according to some informed sources, different priorities are emerging between unions.

Faster pay restoration

Some unions see faster pay restoration as their first requirement, while others view reversing cuts to allowances for new entrants, ending additional hours which their members have had to work in recent years or increasing overtime rates as their priorities.

Over recent months various public service trade union conferences have heard vocal calls from members for accelerated pay restoration and improvements in conditions of employment.

The Government’s policy on public service pay centres around continuing with the Lansdowne Road agreement, which began the process of pay restoration and is scheduled to run until 2018.

The Lansdowne Road deal has been rejected by the Association of Secondary Teachers in Ireland and by Garda representative organisations.