THE GOVERNMENT is to consider proposals next week to clamp down on services and facilities which it provides to trade unions representing staff in the public service.
The proposals, which will be contained in a memorandum for Government drawn up by the Department of Finance, come as industrial action across the public service in protest at pay cuts following the budget last month get under way in earnest.
Among the issues to be examined by the Cabinet is the facility which allows union subscriptions to be deducted at source from the pay of public service staff.
The Government is also expected to consider the future of officials on the State payroll who currently work on local partnership issues between unions and Government departments and bodies.
Thousands of staff across the Civil Service, local authorities, and the health and education sectors who are members of Impact are scheduled to begin industrial action from Monday in protest at the pay cuts.
Members of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation are also expected to commence industrial action on Monday.
The members of the two unions are expected to undertake a work-to-rule, introduce a ban on co-operation with reform plans, and refuse to carry out duties associated with vacant posts in protest at pay cuts.
Further industrial action, including strikes in selective areas, are understood to be under consideration by public sector unions in a second phase of the campaign which could take effect in the weeks ahead.
Mid-ranking civil servants, who are members of the PSEU, are scheduled to join the initial industrial action by the middle of next week.
Yesterday the country’s largest trade union, Siptu, said it would be serving notice of industrial action across the Civil Service, local authorities, and health and education sectors on Monday. This proposed action would come into effect a week later, February 1st.
The Siptu action will, among other areas, involve a ban on co-operating with transformation or reform programmes, as well as the introduction of a work-to-rule.
In local authorities Siptu members will be asked not to co-operate with council meetings.
Siptu health sector organiser Paul Bell said in addition to the current cuts his members had no security in relation to pay into the future.
Lower-paid civil servants who are members of the CPSU have already been involved in industrial action for the last several days.
The Government believes that the CPSU action, which has affected a number of Department of Social and Family Affairs facilities and has seen the Passport Office closed on occasion to the public at lunchtime, has had little real impact so far.
However, the Health Service Executive (HSE), the largest employer in the public service, has said that it is “seriously concerned” about the effect proposed industrial action in the health sector, due to commence next week, could have on patient safety. The HSE on Tuesday sought unions to exempt the health sector from the industrial action in the public service. This request was refused.
The unions said they were “endeavouring to minimise the effect of industrial action on patients and clients, and the initial phase has been designed with this in mind”.