Fórsa is set to take a claim to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER) seeking a reduction in the time spent serving in the Administrative Officer (AO) grade before an AO worker is eligible to be considered for a higher scales uplift.

Currently, in accordance with the agreement reached in Finance Circular 24/1995, an AO must have three years of service in the grade before they become eligible for consideration for a higher scales uplift. This differs from the grades of Higher Executive Officer (HEO) and Executive Officer (EO), each of which require only two years of service in the grade.

Fórsa official Seán Carabini explained that this was one of the many issues identified by the union’s AO working group over the last year.

“AOs believe that the additional year of service required before eligibility when compared with other grades is inequitable and are keen to see this changed. If we are successful, it will mean that AOs will be eligible for consideration a year earlier,” he said.

The rules of how higher scales are administered are different in each Department and, indeed, can be different in different divisions of the same Department.

“This claim will, at the very least, ensure an equity in higher scales. There are other issues that we need to go after for AOs, including the pay disparity between the HEO and AO grades for work that is often the same,” he said.

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