Unions meet to discuss pay

PUBLIC sector union chiefs meet in Dublin today for the start of two days of talks to decide whether they will demand the abandonment of the benchmarking process in the wake of last month’s pay review which gave nothing to most public sector employees.

Less than 11,000 of the country’s 300,000 public sector workers received increases from the benchmarking body.

A preliminary meeting of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions’ Public Services Committee immediately after last month’s announcement confirmed “the disappointment and dismay” of all the public sector unions, according to committee chairman and IMPACT general secretary Peter McLoone.

“The report may have damaged the process and has put at risk the confidence people have in this alternative system,” he said at the time.

The unions’ leaders were asked to consult their executives to discuss the situation before reconvening for two days starting today.

The officials will also be deciding the approach they should take in their negotiations with the Government on the second module of Towards 2016.

Mr McLoone said not only the latest benchmarking report but also the 2002 report must be considered when they meet.

“After the first one we were the subject of relentless criticism. The public has been led to believe we have not delivered on the modernisation and change agenda.”

He said there were 300,000 public sector workers covered by the benchmarking report and it took a lot to get support from a group of that size.