Unions facing further cuts

Trade unions are to be presented with further spending cuts in the coming weeks as the Government reels from an embarrassing savings review flop in the public sector.

As the Government was accused of caving in on cutting public workers’ allowances, Taoiseach Enda Kenny pledged to bring in trade union bosses to squeeze the maximum out of the Croke Park deal.

A decision to mainly target new entrants in the Government’s review of workers allowances also led to charges that ministers were creating a two-tier system in some professions, such as teaching.

Brendan Howlin, the public expenditure minister, this week decided to only save €3.5m this year out of a projected €75m in cuts to allowances by deciding to abolish one out of 1,100 for all workers. But ministers and department secretary generals have been told to report back to Mr Howlin this week on the maximum in savings that can be achieved under the Croke Park deal in order to prevent cuts to frontline services.

Mr Kenny told the Dáil yesterday that union chiefs and public service managers would be brought before the Croke Park agreement implementation body and presented with those findings.

Meetings would take place after he and Mr Howlin had an opportunity to review the recommendations by ministers, he said.

Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin yesterday said the allowances review was meant to target allowances that were “relics” that belonged to “a forgotten era.”

Mr Martin said instead that Mr Howlin had been forced to announce “a humiliating climbdown, cave-in and huge retreat from his opening position.”

Leo Varadkar, the transport minister, had said the planned allowance cuts would have jeopardised the continuation of Croke Park.

Teachers’ representatives said they would to look at the legality of abolishing some allowances for new entrants only.

The Association of Secondary Teachers, Ireland said that mainly younger teachers would now earn about 20% less than their colleagues.