Garda strike threat - Think twice

THE decision yesterday by Garda sergeants and inspectors to join their rank-and-file colleagues on four days of strike action next month is unprecedented.

The action, if it comes to pass, would also be illegal.

At this stage, the decision must be regarded as a hard play in an ever-more difficult negotiation process, but if it comes to pass, a Rubicon will indeed have been crossed.

Despite a litany of reports detailing inefficiency, cultural stasis, and impenetrable insularity bordering on corporate arrogance and resistance to change — and a lengthening list of corruption allegations — the force still retains the support of the general public. That position, however, should not be taken for granted.

Whether these officers and their colleagues accept it or not, a huge number of their fellow citizens regard their secure work conditions, and early pension arrangements, as enviable.

The fact that for most of these workers the idea of pay “restoration” is a fantasy just deepens that divide. The axiom — think twice before you jump — must apply.