The government has agreed to new talks with public service union leaders just hours after announcing a coordinated campaign of trade union ballots.
An invitation for discussions was issued by the Workplace Relations Commission not long after a meeting of the Public Services Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions yesterday to discuss its wage strategy amid rising inflation.
Talks will resume on August 10 or 12.
When asked whether preparations for the vote, including consultations with members, would still continue, a senior union source said: “That decision will be considered.”
Discussions over a revision of Building Momentum’s current wage agreement broke down last month after unions rejected a government proposal of an additional 5 percent pay increase on top of the 2 percent already agreed for this year.
It would mean that civil servants would receive a total wage increase of 7 percent this year and next, at an additional cost of EUR 1.2 billion, bringing the total cost of the wage agreement to EUR 2.3 billion.
WRC Director General Liam Kelly’s invitation states that after the break in talks to allow the parties to “think” the WRC invited them to resume talks “with a view to reaching an agreement” on August 10 or 12.
Seen in a comment by the Irish independentKevin Callinan, chairman of the Public Services Committee, said the committee made it clear that its position could be discussed if the government was willing to “significantly improve” its offering.
“In the meantime, the cost of living has risen significantly in the nearly six weeks since the talks were interrupted,” he says.
“Our belief remains that unless significantly improved, the government side’s offer cannot credibly be submitted to the vote of union members who, like workers across the economy, are currently bearing the brunt of large and sustained increases in heating costs. of housing, fuel, food, housing, childcare and many other necessities.”
He says there will be no agreement unless the government is willing to make an improved offer for a revision of Building Momentum wage conditions 2021 to 2022.
Mr Callinan said this will also be essential if “we are to move forward to agree on wage conditions for 2023”.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Public Expenditure and Reform said the government welcomed and accepted the invitation from the Commission on Labor Relations.
“As Secretary Michael McGrath has said from the outset, the government’s goal is to agree on terms that are fair to officials and taxpayers in general,” the spokesman said.
“Achieving this requires goodwill and a degree of flexibility from both sides.”
Union leaders announced earlier yesterday that plans for public sector union action would be stepped up as part of a coordinated campaign over wages.
The commission’s member unions represent more than 90 percent of the country’s 340,000 civil servants.
Mr Callinan said a significant number of unions had already started preparing for the votes, and he expected them to start next month.
Earlier this week, Mr McGrath indicated the government was willing to improve its wage offer but warned it would not chase inflation and “we will also need the unions to accommodate us”.
The minister said he had a duty to ensure that the public service bill remained affordable not only this year and next, but also in the future.
“Because we have really high inflation now,” he said. “It won’t last indefinitely, but what we want to do here is make commitments to improve pay that we can sustain over the medium to long term.”