THE Government's proposal to dispense with the civil service jobs embargo has received a cautious welcome from unions. But the Civil and Public Services Union stressed last night that its work to rule would continue.
The Government has said it is prepared to negotiate an alternative system of controlling numbers in the civil service and hopes, if talks are successful, to have this in operation by early 1997.
The embargo is beginning to affect some Departments and is inconveniencing the public. Mr John O'Dowd, CPSU general secretary, says it will continue with industrial action, adding that the matter can be raised at its talks in the Labour Relations Commission. These are due to end on May 17th.
Farmers have been particularly affected by the union action. Last week, the Irish Farmers' Association called on the Minister for Agriculture, Mr Yates, to intervene to resolve the dispute. Farmers were suffering enough with the BSE controversy without having to face a work to rule by civil servants, said the IFA.
Mr Yates conceded that several schemes - the land parcel identification package, the new bovine TB scheme and the new tagging arrangements - had been severely disrupted.
But Mr O'Dowd believes the end of the embargo could make workers more amenable to a new national pay agreement. Its abolition would be welcomed by civil servants. It would improve the climate for a centralised agreement, he said.
Mr Dan Murphy, general secretary, Public Service Executive Union, told The Irish Times that its main concern was career development. "It now seems the Government is going to abolish the embargo and obviously that is to be welcomed."
A spokesman for the Minister for Finance, Mr Quinn, said it had always been made clear that the embargo in which only one in three vacancies was filled was temporary. The Minister believed this was a "crude measure" and did not intend having it in place for a long period.
But he was concerned about the rate of increase in the numbers of civil servants up to last December and was anxious to have an alternative system in place aimed at reducing staff.
It was hoped the talks on an alternative system would be successful and the new system would be in operation early next year.
Under the new system, staffing would be reduced by a specified number between now and 1997. It would mean agreeing a total number for the civil service and agreeing a total with each department. The departments would then set a number for the different grades.