Fórsa, and other unions affiliated to the ICTU’s Public Services Committee (PSC), have expressed concern about the slow pace of public service pay talks, which got underway in late November.

The union’s general secretary, Kevin Callinan, who chairs the PSC, said a lot of work still needs to be done despite nine separate engagements over three weeks: “Progress has been undeniably slow so far, and that is disappointing.

“We are hoping to inject a sense of urgency into the next round of talks, and to make real progress on finalising a deal,” he said.

Talks adjourned on Wednesday evening (13th) and are due to resume on Monday morning (18th).

Kevin added: “While a lot of work remains to be done to conclude an agreement within the very small amount of time available, it is significant to have secured a commitment to repeal FEMPI in the context of a multi-year pay deal.

“While it represents an opportunity for unions to operate in an environment no longer bound by emergency measures, the intent of any draft legislation to deliver on that needs to be clear.

“Equally, we remain focused on stabilising any agreement and finding a means to address several outstanding issues affecting some public service grades, groups and categories.

“Considerable work remains to be done to achieve an agreement that can deliver on cost-of-living pay increases, especially for those on lower and middle incomes.

“We’ve exchanged positions on the Government’s modernisation agenda, and on the union’s agenda for the futureproofing of quality public services and jobs.

“More work is needed to bring these items to a conclusion, and we will want to ensure existing protections, such as those on outsourcing, continue within the context of a new agreement.

“As in all negotiations, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, and the pay element is likely to form the concluding phase of the talks process.

That means we really need to push for progress on Monday, as the time available to finalise an agreement is limited both by the December 31st expiration of the Building Momentum agreement, in addition to the Christmas hiatus,” he said.

Fórsa will continue to provide information on pay talks developments to members in the coming days.

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