Sides in partnership talks remain far apart

Employers and unions are to meet again tomorrow in a bid to break the stalemate in talks on a new national partnership deal.

The two sides engaged in detailed exchanges yesterday, but remain far apart on a range of key issues three weeks after talks began.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) is seeking new legislation to underpin workers' pay and conditions, as well as other legal reforms in the area of employment standards. Its position is strongly opposed by Ibec, the employers' body, which claims any increased regulation of the labour market would be detrimental to inward investment.

After Ictu leaders outlined their proposals in detail yesterday, the employers responded with demands of their own.

Ibec is seeking changes, for example, to legislation introduced in 2004 which allows unions not recognised by employers to take cases on pay and conditions to the Labour Court.

It is under this legislation, the Industrial Relations (Miscellaneous Provisions Act), that Impact has taken a case to the court on behalf of pilots employed by Ryanair. The airline has challenged the Labour Court's jurisdiction to deal with the case, and an appeal to the Supreme Court is pending.

Ictu has said substantial progress must be made on the employment standards agenda before it negotiates on other issues such as pay.

It is thought likely that, in the absence of a breakthrough tomorrow, Government officials may try to draw up a compromise formula next week.

The talks are being chaired by Department of the Taoiseach secretary general Dermot McCarthy.

The problem he faces, according to a source at the talks, is that there is little common ground at present on which a compromise might be based.

It had been hoped that the talks on a successor to Sustaining Progress could be concluded by mid-March.