Pay is ‘top priority’ for civil servants

The trade union representing mid-ranking civil servants has said its members will withhold any further productivity in order to secure a restoration of pay in talks beginning next month.

Fri, 17 Apr, 2015 - 01:00

Stephen Rogers

In his address at the start of its annual conference in Kerry, Public Service Executive Union (PSEU) president Brendan Lawless told delegates restoration of pay was the “number one priority for the majority of members”.

Refering to approaching talks with Government, he added: “I want to emphasise to those representing the official side that this will be purely about restoration and there will be no further concessions in return for restoration of pay. There may be plans in some Government quarters to seek more changes and it may seem like an adroit plan to some people but it does have two major flaws.

“One, we have already given all that we can give, and two, we have already given all that we can give. Now, I realise that technically this is only one flaw but I thought it was such a big one it was worth mentioning twice.”

Mr Lawless said that, since 2009, public servants had suffered a deterioration in working conditions as well as in pay.

“We are seeking the restoration of our pay and conditions but we are not naïve enough to expect to go back to pre-2009 pay levels and conditions immediately,” he said. “However, we expect that, as the economy is now on an upward turn, we will see some major reversals of the measures that were introduced.”

Mr Lawless said restoring public sector pay would have a stimulating effect, as the vast majority of public servants are in the low- to middle-income bracket and economic statistics consistently showed people in those income brackets spend disposable income.

“They have no other choice. They have little or nothing to save,” he said. The union’s delegates also noted the impact that additional hours has had on civil servants with children due to additional childcare costs.

PSEU general secretary Tom Geraghty will be a key figure in the upcoming talks as a member of the negotiating team of the Public Service Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions.

He said public servants had suffered a huge burden and now wanted to begin the process of restoration.

“We have a lot of members who are seriously struggling to cope with the financial tsunami that has hit them,” said Mr Geraghty. “The country needs a pay increase.”

Both Jobs Minister Richard Bruton and Health Minister Leo Varadkar indicated in recent days they believe pay restoration must be accompanied by a rise in productivity, with Mr Bruton telling the Sunday Business Post it would be wrong to revert to a situation where “the bridge between pay and productivity was broken”.

Earlier this month, Government sources indicated that when spending plans are outlined in the spring budget statement, expected on April 28, “it would be difficult not to outline a huge item like funds available for the public sector”.

“The pension levy is an obvious area public sector unions will be looking for a relaxation,” the source said.

The spring statement will allow Minister for Public Expenditure Brendan Howlin to shape his expectations for public sector unions negotiations before discussions get underway.