Public sector pay talks at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) resumed on Tuesday 9th of January, after adjourning shortly before Christmas. After making progress on several key issues the focus turned to pay on Wednesday. 

However, despite initial optimism that the talks might progress quickly unions were alarmed at the derisory opening offer. A revised offer was still viewed by union negotiators as not credible and the talks adjourned at 3am, to allow time for reflection on the Government side.

On Thursday morning unions expressed concern that the Government’s initial pay offering illustrated its lack of preparedness to complete a sustainable and robust multi-year pay deal, and further undermined perceptions of the Government’s approach to the process of securing a new agreement.

The initial offer would have put little more than an average of just €5 per week, before deductions, in the wages of low-income public service workers, and €10 per week in the wages of those on middle-incomes in the first year. There was shock in the room when this offer was made. That offer did not include any payment before June 2024.

Throughout this process the union side has been clear that any agreement must address the cost-of-living pressures members face on a daily basis. Such small amounts don’t come close to doing that.

The offer put on the table by government on Wednesday night failed to meet the basic test of dealing with the cumulative gap between wages and inflation – which amounts to almost 19% over the last three years. While most public servants received increases amounting to 9.5 % in the same period, the shortfall remains significant. 

The revised offer of 7.5% plus 1% local bargaining, which would begin with a 1.5% increase from 1 March 2024, remains very far from addressing the gap between wages and inflation.
  
In a note to Fórsa members General Secretary Kevin Callinan said: “Public sector workers show up for our country and our citizens every day. They deserve to be treated with respect and an offer like this is neither fair, nor credible.”

He continued: “The Government has effectively undermined its own approach to negotiating a multi-year public service pay agreement. There have been months of delays, and they have allowed Building Momentum to lapse, which puts us in an unprecedented position.”

On Thursday morning the officers of the Public Services Committee (PSC) of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) met with affiliate and non-affiliated unions and associations. At these meetings ballot wording was approved so that unions are ready to ballot members for industrial action should it become necessary.