The strike by more than 300,000 public sector workers planned for Thursday has been called off after Government and union officials agreed a new national pay agreement following late night talks in Dublin.
Talks between Government representatives and union officials stretched into Friday morning before news that a deal was struck was announced to reporters at the Workplace Relations Commission in Ballsbridge shortly after 3.30am.
While the finer details of the agreement have yet to be laid out, it is understood wages for more than 400,000 public and civil servants are set to rise by 10.75 per cent over 33 months.
It is likely to mean modest lump sums for workers in the coming months with the initial 2 per cent to be backdated to September 1st.
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The agreement is also likely to contain clauses that will entitle lower paid public sector workers to increases that are higher in percentage terms than the headline figures.
Unions negotiators were still scheduled to consult the 15 other affiliates to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions’ (Ictu) public services committee to discuss the terms agreed and the strike.
But, with the deal concluded and support expected from the other unions, cancelling the 24-hour stoppage is likely to be a formality.
Talks on the new deal went on well into the night as the two sides sought to address a variety of outstanding issues and pull the overall document together.
In the end, both sides said they were happy with an agreement that will deliver basic pay increases of at least 7.75 per cent between January 1st, 2027, and March 31st, 2029, with an additional 1 per cent for local bargaining.
More to follow ...
