Ten thousand An Post workers could be in line for a wage increase after enduring an effective pay freeze for the past seven years.

This follows the Labour Court stating that the continuance of the pay freeze proposed by An Post “is no longer a viable proposition” in spite of a warning from the company that a concession would considerably worsen the financial health of the company.

It called on the company and the unions to continue discussions on a range of efficiency savings, which could pave the way for a pay rise. In its claim, the Communications Workers’ Union (CWU) is seeking a 6 per cent “cost of living” increase.

Major changes

Before the court, the CWU stated that postal staff have not received a pay increase since August 2008 and “staff have contributed very significantly to the successful implementation of major changes, while improving services to record levels”. The union also pointed out that “major ongoing savings have and continue to be achieved with staff affording full co-operation”.

However, in its response, An Post pointed out that the core An Post firm “is currently in a loss-making cycle” acknowledging that the overall An Post Group returned to a modest profit in 2014 after two years of losses.

Recommendation

The court stated it noted that the financial projections made by the company in relation to its core business “do not suggest any amelioration of the current position in the short term”. The court stated that “against that background the court does not consider it appropriate to make a definitive recommendation on the unions’ pay claim at this time.

Nevertheless, the court believes that the continuance of the current pay freeze, as proposed by the company, is not a viable proposition”. It recommended that the parties should engage in further discussions.