There is currently no basis for a negotiation with the Government on a new pay deal for 340,000 staff employed by the State, the head of the country’s largest public service trade union has warned.
Kevin Callinan, secretary general of Fórsa, maintained that the absence of a new agreement would create a "very difficult industrial relations environment".
He urged the union to begin the formulation of new pay claims to be submitted to public service employers in the months ahead.
The current public service pay deal expires at the end of the year.
Addressing a meeting of the union's branch representatives on Thursday he expressed disappointment at the lack of progress made in recent months with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform on a potential new accord despite discussions with the Minister Michael McGrath in July.
Mr Callinan said a scheduled meeting with the Department of Public Expenditure this week had been postponed “because (its) officials had yet to consult with the Minister to establish the basis for any negotiations”.
“We’re in an uncertain period, where stability and certainty are at a higher premium than usual, and that is what a comprehensive national agreement would be designed to deliver,” he said.
“However, as it stands, it is not even clear if we will be entering into negotiations. That means there is now a grave risk that we will find ourselves, perhaps unintentionally, without an agreement at the end of the year.”
He said the absence of a successor agreement “would mean that there is nothing in place to guarantee industrial peace, nor any direct mechanism to resolve sectoral disputes”.
“It would make for a very difficult industrial relations environment. Let’s be clear, it will be the Government’s responsibility if that happens.”
Mr Callinan said: “If we enter 2021 without an agreement, we’re looking at a period of uncertainty and instability, so we must begin preparations for an alternative strategy, chiefly the formulation of claims to be submitted to employers when the current agreement expires on 31st December.”
Mr Callinan is due to brief other public service union leaders on Friday at a meeting of the Public Services Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions.
He said the basis of negotiations for a new public service agreement would need to address specific austerity measures, include an acceptable approach to pay, and provide a clear path to resolving particular long-standing issues within public service grades, groups and categories, ensuring an ultimate resolution in each case.
He said these priorities had been outlined to the Department of Public Expenditure officials as the basic requirements of any negotiation.
Mr Callinan said the reversal of additional working hours, introduced under the 2013 Haddington Road agreement as an alternative to an additional pay cut at the time, remained a priority issue for the union.
Public service staff received a final 2 per cent pay increase under the existing public pay agreement at the beginning of October.
