Public Service Pay Commission must not be staffed by ‘usual suspects’

The country’s largest public sector union has warned that the newly-announced Public Service Pay Commission (PSPC) will quickly become “debased” in the eyes of the State’s employees if it is staffed by “the usual suspects”.

In a blog on the Impact trade union’s website, its head of communications, Bernard Harbor, said membership of the commission needs to be balanced.

“It’s bound to involve academics, including economists,” he wrote. “But, please, not too many. And not with the predilection for parsimony now so common to the dismal science. Let’s also hope that the Public Appointments Service which will make recommendations about who should be on the Commission understands that people with a union background have a contribution to make, and attracts some genuine experts who support quality public services and fair pay. Because a body packed with the usual suspects will quickly become debased in the eyes of public employees and others.”