Senior gardaí will not follow GRA on action over pay

IN spite of the apparent determination among rank and file gardaí to push ahead with industrial action to protect their pay, the association which represents their seniors has said it will not be rushing to follow suit.

As the law stands, gardaí are precluded from taking industrial action. In spite of that, a survey by the Garda Representative Association (GRA) has shown that one in five members is prepared to strike and 93% are prepared to take industrial action which stops short of work stoppages.

Nonetheless, the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors, which has more than 2,000 members, is opting to first pursue a campaign to have itself recognised as a trade union and wants to enlist the help of Labour Relations Commission chief Kieran Mulvey.

AGSI general secretary Joe Dirwan said his organisation had already had successive meetings with the Irish Congress of Trade Unions to gauge its support for garda representatives to be affiliated to the trade union umbrella group.

He said ICTU was also examining the operation of police trade unions in Europe and assessing the implications of European legislation on the matter.

AGSI officials have also met with Justice Minister Dermot Ahern to discuss both the implications of the pay cuts and the gaps left by the non-filling of posts. On the latter, the representative body has managed get the sign-off on promotions to replace 186 sergeants and 29 inspectors who retired in 2009 with 160 sergeants and 30 inspectors.

The AGSI has held regional meetings where the national executive got the go-ahead to plot a way forward. The members will then vote on how best to proceed when the AGSI holds its national conference at the end of March.

Meanwhile, the Department of Justice has said it will be making no further comment on the outcome of the Garda Representative Association questionnaire. There are no plans for a meeting with the Commissioner on the matter.

It appears likely that at its next conference, the GRA will put motions for industrial action to its members. If they are passed, the GRA executive will have to take action, probably within a couple of weeks.