Medical scientists vote to back Lansdowne Road pay deal

Members of the Medical Laboratory Scientists Association (MLSA) have voted by an overwhelming majority to accept the proposed new Lansdowne Road pay deal for staff in the public service.

Medical scientists supported the proposals by a margin of 82 per cent to 18 per cent.

The MLSA represents 2,000 medical scientists, including 1,800 in the public health service.

MLSA general secretary, Terry Casey said that the endorsement of the Lansdowne Road proposals represented " the start of a process of pay restoration for the Association's members in the public service".

“The large ‘Yes’ vote is a recognition that the Lansdowne Road proposals represent the start of a process of pay restoration following the succession of cuts introduced under Fempi (financial emergency) legislation since 2009,” he said.

Under the proposed Lansdowne Road deal, most public service personnel will receive an increase in earnings of about €2,000 in three phases between January 2016 and September 2017.

Following the backing of the deal by a number of large trade unions such as Siptu, Impact and the Irish National Teachers' Organisation, it is now certain that the proposed Lansdowne Road deal will be formally ratified by the public services committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) in the autumn.

The deal has been rejected by members of the Irish Medical Organisation. However, it has signalled that it will be bound by the overall decision of the public services committee of Ictu.

Last month, the 23-member standing committee of the secondary school teachers’ union ASTI urged the organisation’s overall executive to recommend rejection of the proposed new public service pay deal.

The central executive of the ASTI will consider the issue at a meeting in late August or early September.

A ballot of ASTI members will be held in the autumn.

The executive of the Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) has also urged its members to reject the proposed new pay deal in a forthcoming ballot.

The TUI has said that if its members vote to reject the proposed Lansdowne Road deal, it will not be bound by any aggregate vote of unions affiliated to the public service committee of Ictu.