Fórsa general secretary Kevin Callinan, who chairs the Public Services Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, has written to affiliated public service unions to advise there is currently no basis for formal negotiations on a new public service agreement. 

Unions are now preparing for the possibility that no deal will be in place when the existing agreement expires at the end of June, while warning that this could remain the case indefinitely once the current deal expires. 

These developments follow initial engagements with Government officials this week, which unions say have not yet established a framework capable of supporting meaningful negotiations. 

Kevin, who leads the trade union side in negotiations, said contact with Government officials would be maintained, but warned that preparations are now underway for a range of contingencies, including the potential for ballots: “We made the case for a different type of agreement designed to provide as much stability and certainty as possible in uncertain times. 

“We argued that it was essential to address pay and living standards at the outset to see if a formula could be agreed before investing time and effort in other matters. At the conclusion of Thursday morning’s meeting, we advised officials that we would be reporting to affiliate unions that our assessment was that there was not a basis for formal negotiations to begin at this time. 

“Accordingly, we need to prepare for the likelihood that there will be no agreement in place from 1st July, and the possibility that this will be the case for an indefinite period,” he said, adding that unions must now prepare for ballots. 

He has previously said that any multi-year agreement must provide certainty for workers, and that this is not confined to pay, with an urgent need to address the wider issues shaping working life: “The volatility of the times demands something stronger, so an agreement capable of seeing workers through it is essential. 

“That means comprehensive and unambiguous policies to properly manage remote working, strong protections against outsourcing, and measures to protect jobs and workers as AI (artificial intelligence) is further integrated into the workplace. 

“Any negotiations must address these issues in a meaningful way. We can’t rely on the types of agreements we’ve forged since 2010. What happens in 2026 needs to be different. It needs to reflect the times we are in. 

“The country has the resources to create a secure path to the future for working people, and all parties to these talks must look seriously at how we can achieve that,” he said. 

Talks had been expected to begin this week, with Government indicating it would issue a formal invitation to unions. Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers has said he wants “constructive dialogue with trade unions to ensure that we can have a sustainable pay agreement.” 

Unions say the discussions are taking place at a point of significant uncertainty for workers, shaped not only by cost-of-living pressures but by wider considerations including the impact of AI and the future of remote work. 

Fórsa’s ‘A Better Deal’ campaign has already seen almost 49,000 public service workers signal that they will only support an agreement that addresses the cost of living and related priorities. Workers who have not already signed the pledge are encouraged to do so, as a strong mandate will be central to the union’s approach in the talks. 

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