THE IRISH Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) will tell the Government today that it will not engage in the new process aimed at assisting economic recovery if it is solely concerned with cutting pay and public services.
The stance will be set out in Ictu’s formal submission to the Government on its economic recovery programme.
Ictu will argue that “everyone who can pay should pay” and that it would have to be obvious to workers generally that “everyones shoulder is to be put to the wheel”.
Meanwhile, two public sector trade unions yesterday said they would not enter into discussions with the Government on the issue of pay cuts for members.
The Civil Public and Services Union (CPSU), which represents about 13,000 lower paid staff, also said it would not agree to any proposal to defer the 3.5 per cent rise due in September under the new national agreement. It wants the pay deal to be implemented as agreed with the Government last autumn. The Irish Nurses’ Organisation (INO) said it did not believe that the Government could act unilaterally in cutting public sector pay.
The INO said its executive council had decided that the union should immediately seek legal advice on this issue. The INO has not ruled out a legal challenge to any unilateral move by the Government to impose pay cuts if its legal advice indicates that such a move is unlawful.
CPSU general secretary Blair Horan said civil and public servants would take a constructive approach to the current crisis, “but would not accept being scapegoated by some economists and other commentators whose economic philosophy was the root cause of the current crisis”.
He said the union was already taking a responsible approach in its discussion with the Department of Social and Family Affairs on the redeployment of clerical officers to employment exchanges to cope with the increase in the live register without their replacement through recruitment.
“However, as far as CPSU is concerned, pay cuts are not on the agenda, and neither will the union agree to any proposal to defer the September pay deal any further.
“This ship of state did not drift on to the rocks due to an engine failure caused by the global financial crisis. This ship of state was driven full speed ahead on to the rocks, through a failed housing policy and reckless lending by the banks,” he said.
The INO said its executive council believed it would be counterproductive, deflationary and wholly unfair to ask any nurse or midwife, who is already overworked and often working in overcrowded and difficult environments, to consider any reduction in their already poor levels of pay.
INO general secretary Liam Doran said: “The INO, in keeping with other public sector unions, will not enter into any discussions which are convened to consider pay cuts of any shape or form.”
“The difficulties facing this country must be addressed by all in Irish society in equal measure, according to their ability to pay. We are already experiencing unemployment within the nurse/midwifery workforce side by side with understaffed services.”