Union seeks talks on new Croke Park deal

THE STATE’S largest public service union has proposed that there should be talks with the Government on a successor to the Croke Park agreement, which expires in two years.

Delegates at the biennial conference of the union Impact in Killarney backed proposals that it should commence negotiations on a deal to take effect from 2014.

Proposing the motion, Declan Howard of the union’s Fingal County Council branch, said planning for a new agreement should get under way now and not close to the expiry date of the current deal. “The question we should be thinking about is not just the agreement that suits your career and suits your pay packet, but what kind of public service do you wish to see at the end of this.”

Delegates at the conference insisted that the Croke Park deal – which guarantees no further pay cuts or the introduction of compulsory redundancies in return for co-operation with reform – was delivering substantial savings and changed work practices. However speakers also argued that they would not tolerate any further cuts in pay, allowances or increments.

The conference also backed a motion calling on the Government to deliver on its commitment under the agreement to reimburse lower-paid staff some of the money deducted in 2009 and 2010 in the pay cut and pension levy from the savings currently being generated.

Peter Ryan of the federated government employees branch said he did not see this proposal, in the current economic climate, as an aspiration but rather a necessity.

“Workers in this country are delivering, Impact members are delivering. The basic question is, is the Government delivering? A deal is a deal is a deal.”

Mr Ryan asked how could workers deliver on growth in the economy “when the pittance of the disposable income we had was eroded in successive cuts. Our disposable income is now disposed.”

Michael Sheridan of the union’s agriculture number one branch said allowances paid to public service staff were part of their pay and could not be cut. Cuts in allowances would be a breach of the Croke Park agreement.

The conference remitted to the union’s executive a motion calling on it to oppose by all means, including legal action, any cuts in allowances.

Impact deputy general secretary Kevin Callinan said the union was confident that all allowances paid to its members were justified.

Impact general secretary Shay Cody said that as long as the public finances were in their current state, “there will be unrelenting pressure to erode public services, wages and working conditions”.

He said the Croke Park deal had directly led to savings of €680 million last year. He was confident that the second review of the agreement, which is due next month, would also highlight “substantial savings”.

Mr Cody also indicated that talks with public service management at the Labour Relations Commission on proposals to reduce by half existing sick-leave arrangements would not be successful. He signalled that the issue would go to the Labour Court.

He said the union’s priority was to maintain the existing arrangement of six months on full pay and six months on half pay for staff with serious illnesses. He also suggested that uncertified sick leave should be measured over a two-year period rather than over 12 months. The conference passed a motion seeking to preserve existing sick-leave arrangements.