Senior public sector trade union leaders have been accused of “sacrificing” frontline workers, further deepening the divide between emergency service personnel and the rest of the public service.

Trade Unions are considering holding a major protest march in February to voice their anger at a failure by the Government to agree a deal on Ireland's debt.

A senior Cabinet Minister said today that the issue of public service allowances will be re-examined, but only as part of the Croke Park deal.

Education Minister Ruairi Quinn was derided at Easter when he suggested that the depth of the economic crisis had not yet been understood by some people in the education sector.

Public service strikes in the UK today are having a knock-on effect on travel here.

The latest rise in unemployment proves the Government’s policy of cuts is not working, union leaders have warned.

THE Labour Court has formally ratified the 7.5% cut in the minimum pay rates in the construction industry, a move which experts say could lead to savings of €300 million to €400m.

It has emerged officials from the Departments of Health and Finance, the HSE and Trade Unions made overseas trips paid for from a training fund.

The poorest members of society will be forced in to destitution if staff in social welfare offices go on strike, it was claimed today.

The trade union movement is warning that its campaign of action over Budget pay cuts will soon be escalated.

Unions were this evening warning of an 'indefinite strike' in protest at the cuts to public sector pay in yesterday's Budget.

MINISTER Micheál Martin has scoffed talk of disunity within the Cabinet about how €4 billion in savings will be made in Wednesday’s budget.

GARDAÍ, nurses and other frontline public servants have warned trade union leaders that they must give no concessions on allowances, overtime and other premium payments in the latest round of pay talks with the Government.

THE Government will meet with trade union representatives this evening to discuss a resumption of talks on a new economic recovery plan.

ISME has called for the current Social Partnership process to be abandoned and replaced immediately with a National Representative Forum.

More than 80 organisations have supported a complaint to the European Commission, claiming that Ireland is in breach of EU equality law.

The electricians’ strike is taking its toll on the already fragile economy, Brian Cowen warned today.

THE pay talks finally collapsed at about 4am on Saturday morning. For the first time in more than 20 years, since the economic nightmare of the 1980s, there is no pay agreement in place.

NURSES and midwives plan to boycott next week’s Irish Congress of Trade Unions vote on the national pay agreement.

PJ Carroll and company limited have announced the closure of the company’s manufacturing plant in Dundalk, Co Louth, with a loss of 66 jobs.

A trusted associate of Taoiseach Bertie Ahern is involved with a company at the centre of a major IRA money laundering probe, it emerged today.

The Pensions Board said today that the uptake of Personal Retirement Savings Accounts is progressing steadily, according to its latest quarterly review of data from all PRSA providers to the end of March.

TRADE UNIONS at Aer Rianta have made a last-ditch effort to start talks with the Minister for Transport in a bid to avoid strike action at the country’s three main airports.

Trade Unions in Aer Rianta will announce on Tuesday their course of action in response to the Government's decision to break-up the state-owned body.

GLOBAL business interests are jeopardising social rights, SIPTU’s biannual conference in Galway heard yesterday.

AER RIANTA workers at Dublin, Cork and Shannon airports will down tools at 2pm on Monday for a mandatory meeting to discuss the decision to break up the national airports authority.

Thousands of Irish people will take to the streets later today in protest at the continuing war by the US and Britain on Iraq.

The Tanaiste Mary Harney has hinted tonight that there is limited scope for pay rises in the current partnership negotiations.

Trade Unions and the Western Health board are meeting this morning to discuss 200 job cuts of clerical workers in the region.

A rail strike is to go ahead on Tuesday next after the ATGWU served notice of industrial action, which will result in a series of one-day stoppages throughout the month of May.