Government's privilege days review to look at local deals

THE GOVERNMENT’S proposed new review of privilege days for staff across the public service will re-examine any local agreements that may have been reached on this issue between unions and management.

The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform said last night that the public service-wide review of privilege days, which has been announced by the Minister Brendan Howlin, would look at previous arrangements which have been put in place in different sectors.

An arbitration board last month rejected proposals put forward by the Department of Finance to restrict privilege days – additional days off given on top of annual leave – for staff in the Civil Service. However, it left the door open for the Government to look at the issue on a public service-wide basis.

Privilege days not only apply in the Civil Service but also are common in the health service and in local authorities.

Agreements reached in the health service in 2005 and 2008 allowed former health board personnel to retain privilege days which they had been given in addition to annual leave.

A standardised working week and leave arrangement was put in place for all new entrants and for staff who received promotion.

However, highly placed sources said last night that there would be some staff in the HSE, who were formerly health board employees, whose total time off allocation annually would be “not far from 40 days”.

Some informed sources also maintained that there would be a small number of non-teaching staff in the Vocational Education Committee sector who would have 36, 37, or 38 days leave annually for historical reasons.

Earlier this week it emerged that some senior local authority staff had up to 42 days leave. In some cases the total annual leave includes privilege days or days which had at one stage been awarded to mark church holidays and which were subsequently “bought out” and converted to regular leave several years ago.

The Department of the Environment has proposed introducing a standardised working week and leave arrangement to apply in local authorities.

However, this has been opposed by trade unions.

The trade union Impact has suggested that the health service deal, which introduced standardisation for new entrants but which left existing personnel with their current arrangements should be the model to be applied in the local authority sector.

A review of terms and conditions for non-teaching VEC personnel is due to commence shortly. It is understood that management is awaiting the outcome of the deliberations of the national implementation body for the Croke Park agreement on the objections raised by unions to the reforms proposed in the local authority sector.

The introduction of standardised arrangements for leave and privilege days is considered by many to be necessary to facilitate the Government’s plans to break down barriers between the various parts of the public service.

On Thursday a spokesman for Mr Howlin said it was the Government’s objective to achieve a more integrated public service with greater mobility within and between sectors.