Applications have now closed for one of the country's most vital and influential jobs, Director General of the Irish Business and Employers Federation (IBEC). John Dunne leaves the post in November, seven years after it was established. He has successfully completed the negotiations on the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness, which aims to consolidate and increase our current economic wellbeing for the next 2.9 years. The IBEC DG and the secretary general of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), Peter Cassels, are, with the Government, the major players in the Social Partnership which, according to some, is at least as powerful as the Cabinet in running the internal affairs of the country.
So there is a lot of speculation about who will replace Dunne, who is viewed as having done an excellent job. Three insiders are said to be in the running - directors Turlough O'Sullivan (Human Resources), Brian Geoghegan (Economic Affairs) and Peter Brennan (Europe). There is also talk that the plum may go to an outsider, which could be anyone, since the 7,500 IBEC members include all the semi-state companies and big businesses. Although the salary is negotiable, it is believed to be in the region of £150,000. Senior IBEC officers decide who gets it.
