Deputy general secretary and head of the Civil Service division Éamonn Donnelly is due to meet with officials from the Department of Public Expenditure (DPER) today, Friday 8th May.

The meeting follows an exchange of correspondence regarding outstanding local bargaining claims, submitted by the union on behalf of members. 

In a letter sent on Wednesday 22nd April, Éamonn outlined the state of play in regard to local bargaining, ahead of a 1st of May deadline for receipt of claims set by the Department. He noted that while some claims have been settled in respect of the first phase of local bargaining, other claims remain under discussion. 

The letter also outlined principles to apply to claims that had not been formally submitted  at that point. It said: “In the absence of bespoke claims for any particular grade, such grades are claiming adjustments similar to the adjustments made for core or marker grades.” 

To address this Fórsa submitted a series of ‘catchment claims’ last week, intended to ensure no group was left of discussions. 

Éamonn made it clear that the principles in the letter apply to claims on behalf of Fórsa members in all sectors, not just the Civil Service, including the non- commercial state agency sector. 

The letter also clearly stated that: “The complexity of costing or the rigidity of a bargaining unit  cannot be used as an inhibitor to the processing of a claim, as all grades are entitled to make a claim under the provisions of the Public Service Agreement 2024-2026.” 

Speaking ahead of today’s meeting Éamonn said: “We have made it clear that we are serious about resolving local bargaining claims, and we won’t accept grades, groups or categories of workers being left out simply due to deadlines or complexities in costing of claims.”

“We hope to make meaningful progress at today’s talks. Members are entitled to the percentage increases allocated to local bargaining and we intend to ensure they get them.” 

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