An official circular will soon issue on the calculation of cash deductions for public servants at the top of their scale who prefer to lose cash rather than incur a temporary loss of leave under the Haddington Road agreement. Negotiations on how the calculation will be done, which have been underway for some time, were near conclusion as this bulletin went to press.

Under Haddington Road, public servants who earn between €35,000 and €65,000 a year, and who are at the top of their scale, have to temporarily forfeit six days leave over the lifetime of the deal – or the cash equivalent. This is to reflect the fact that staff who are not at the top of scales will incur temporary delays in the payment of increments.

IMPACT insisted that the agreement gave staff the choice of a financial alternative if it suited them better than a temporary loss of leave. The Haddington Road deal gave the option of a cash deduction from salary worth the value of six annual leave days or half their most recent increment, whichever was the lesser. But Revenue problems arose over the implementation of this aspect of the deal. This led to the current negotiation on how the cash value of leave will be calculated.

Staff who earn between €35,000 and €65,000, and reach the top of the scale following a second increment paid during the lifetime of the agreement, must incur a once-off loss of three days leave or the cash equivalent. They are to be subject to the same formula for calculating the cash equivalent.

The loss of leave or the cash equivalent is not a permanent reduction; it’s a once-off loss of leave spread over the three-year period of the agreement.

Details will be posted on the IMPACT website as soon as they emerge.