More than 120 Fórsa members working in Pobal’s Better Start programme are to escalate their work-to-rule action, which began in early September.  

The industrial action, by Grade 2 early years specialists, is in response to the employer’s failure to pay a 2% wage increase due in March 2025. Pobal management refuses to address this long-standing grade dispute.

The Better Start National Early Years Quality Development is a national initiative established by the Department of Children, Disability and Equality (DCDE) and hosted by Pobal. Its aim is to promote and enhance inclusive high-quality Early Learning and Care (ELC) for children from birth to six years of age in Ireland.  

Following talks at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) in September, the employer proposed to grant staff one extra day of annual leave to address the grade dispute and to pay the 2% increase due to members. This was contingent on staff accepting additional duties as a mandatory part of their work, though these tasks are currently voluntary.  

Members unanimously rejected the proposals. As a result, the industrial action will escalate from the end of October (Thursday 30th). The escalation will mean that members will stop participating in Teams meetings and will prioritise community-based work with children over data input and filling out forms.  

This will be in addition to the work-to-rule already in place, which includes confining working to a seven-hour day and not providing cover for annual, maternity, or sick leave.   

Assistant general secretary David Field said: “This workforce is already stretched beyond capacity, so the proposals received from management were far from what would be needed to end this dispute.”

“At recent Aistear trainings in Limerick, Sligo and Mullingar, our members dressed in black and wore Fórsa badges to build visibility and protest at the lack of progress and engagement from management on these issues.” 

“Our members working in Pobal are dedicated to improving equality in Irish society, so it’s very frustrating that they themselves aren’t being shown the respect they deserve,” he concluded. 

Paula Gavin from the branch said: “This dispute has been ongoing since 2019. We go above and beyond our work, which is more than just a job for many of us. We’re continuously upskilling as our roles continue to expand, yet we’re being denied the pay raise we’re due and the grade correction we deserve. We’re determined to keep going with this industrial action until there’s a full resolution of this long-standing dispute.”  

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