Exporters want halt to benchmarking

THE Irish Exporters Association (IEA) has added its voice to calls for the benchmarking pay awards to public servants to be stopped.

In its pre-budget submission to the Minister for Finance, it said that the relatively moderate wage increases in the private sector could be disturbed if public sector workers were seen to be getting pay increases without productivity gains.

“The IEA is strongly of the view that no further payments should be made under the benchmarking agreement until there is clear evidence of productivity gains in government services,” it said.