Any attempt to renege on benchmarking would leave the social partnership process in tatters and plunge the country back into an era of acrimonious public pay disputes, the ICTU warned today.
Speaking at the publication of a document outlining the case for benchmarking, Mr Peter McLoone, chairman of ICTU's public services committee, said the modernisation programme linked to benchmarking pay rises was already delivering "major reforms" while ensuring industrial peace.
The current public sector public pay freeze has also saved the taxpayer millions, says Mr McLoone.
"Those who oppose benchmarking, including those who call for a renegotation of the deal, show little understanding of the process or the public services," Mr McLoone said.
He added that the benchmarking process will have been under way for five years by the time all the increases are paid, and that the cost has been spread over four budgets in recognition of the economic and fiscal situation.
Mr McLoone also defended the methodology for determining the benchmarking payments, a process cloaked in such secrecy that it merited an exemption from the Freedom of Information Act.
Mr McLoone described the benchmarking body's research as "the most extensive ever carried out in Ireland" and its report includes "a detailed description of its methodology".
He said that it was "well-known" before it reported that the benchmarking body could not publish the raw data on which its recommendations were based.
This is common practice in public and private sector labour market research because information is collected from private sector firms on a confidential basis, he said.
"Had the benchmarking body not given this commitment to the private sector, there simply would have been no benchmarking report because no company would have co-operated.
"That means we would still have had the old pay links that everyone identified as the main barrier to public sector reform," said Mr McLoone.
He concluded "For nearly four years public servants had been told they could make no claims because benchmarking was the only game in town. It would be unfair and short sighted to attempt to re-write the agreement now.
"Public servants' pay fell behind during the boom years and they have waited patiently for the benchmarking process to redress that," he said.