The SIPTU executive yesterday recommended the acceptance of the new partnership programme, but qualified the move with a number of reservations.
Meanwhile, a special delegate conference of Ireland's largest private-sector union, Mandate, rejected the proposed deal.
The SIPTU executive will recommend to their 200,000 members that the partnership programme, Sustaining Progress, should be accepted but on the clear understanding that it is an interim programme, to be replaced by March 2004. The members will be balloted next Monday for three weeks in what is expected to be a close poll.
SIPTU vice-president, Mr Jack O'Connor, said: "The balance of opinion will be between whether it's better to go for the interim agreement or go for free collective bargaining now. It's going to be very close." The executive would not be recommending this type of deal for the normal period of the National Agreement, which was usually about three years, he said.
"We have recommended a 'mark-time' deal which will just about maintain living standards," Mr O'Connor said.
This was a recommendation qualified by a number of reservations and made in the context of the alternatives which presented themselves at a time of economic uncertainty and on the basis of a replacement deal, he said.
The deal was short of what their aspirations would be, for instance, on issues regarding the lower paid and the phasing of pay increases.
Pay increases would be just over 7 per cent over 18 months. But if projections for inflation were taken into account, this would represent a little over 1 per cent ahead of inflation. "We have strong reservations about the way the increases are phased and think the money should be paid earlier on," Mr O'Connor said.
SIPTU wanted a deal that would enable progress on issues like statutory redundancy and the right to organise and be a member of a union. There would certainly be members who would do well out of the agreement, but they had to look across the membership to people who would not do as well.
Meanwhile, the Mandate executive will recommend to its 40,000 members that the programme be rejected in a ballot.
The union's general secretary, Mr Owen Nulty said the proposed agreement offered little to low-paid workers and had dismally failed to tackle conclusively the issue of union recognition.
This proposed agreement would only deliver pay increases at the rate of 3.5 percent over 12 months, considerably less than inflation.
"Our members also have strong concerns relating to the sections of the proposed agreement with regard to trade union recognition which represent another missed opportunity to enhance the rights of workers to be represented by a trade union," he said.