Mary Harney says that if the unions do not exercise restraint we are in for a return to the bad old days. And she's right, up to a point. Social partnership has contributed greatly to the prosperity enjoyed here in the last 10 years.
But though the prosperity is obvious, and in some cases ostentatious, its lop-sided distribution has sharpened the differences between classes, which could make partnership difficult. It has already undermined social cohesion.
So before Mary Harney's colleagues and allies step up to lecture the rest of us on responsibility, they should be reminded of a few home truths.
For a start, there are a great many people - between one-quarter and one-third of the population - for whom these are "the bad old days". And changes made since the Coalition's arrival in office 15 months ago have neither improved their lot nor raised their hopes. More to the point, they were not meant to.
Indeed, the conditions in which one-quarter to one-third of the population live do not make a blind bit of difference to hard chaws like the Minister for Finance.
They preach responsibility, of course, from here to payback time; but when it comes to those who most need State aid, they argue the toss and sneer at "the poverty industry".
They're true me feiners, like those who argue the toss about migrants being helped "when our own are in need", then turn out to be every bit as hostile to travellers, the unemployed and whoever gives a damn about any of them.
Welfare increases in the Budget are not enough. Not when they're smugly dished out as if by grace and favour, with bland reminders that favours are expected in return. Not without a serious attempt at reform.
This is not a reforming government. It never was. And these are not just the bad old days for the people most in need; they are bad new days for the whole community. Our sense of community is being chopped to pieces; and the Fianna Fail-Progressive Democrat coalition is happy to help with the operation.
Why not? Politicians who believe that whoever pays the piper calls the tune are less likely to resist the wishes of their paymasters than those who take an independent view.
That means the left, but not only the left. Some politicians on all sides see what is happening and why. So do many community leaders. There are voluntary organisations the State could not afford to lose.
There are tens of thousands of people who show a generosity of spirit and a sense of community that puts many of our political leaders to shame.
As Labour and Democratic Left discuss reorganisation they must do more than worry about the number of seats they hold. They must show they are intent on change, in their own case and in society.
Changes are needed, not only in welfare payments but in education, health, housing, employment, information and access to those who make and administer decisions. Not only in finance and industry but in ideas and language.
Many assume that ideological divisions no longer exist. That the terms "right" and "left" have ceased to make sense. That in world affairs there is no alternative to the American way.
If there is, they say, it is to be found in even greater reliance on the market - obedience to forces no longer amenable to national control.
It means abandoning all restraints exercised on behalf of the community, and a growing acceptance of Margaret Thatcher's view that the very idea of community is a thing of the past.
But hold on: this is what gave us the tiger economies of the Far East: Korea, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan.
It's the course Russia was urged to adopt when the Soviet Union collapsed. The medicine that would make Brazil an example to the rest of South America.
This is the ideology of the right put into effect - though you will have to look beyond these shores for an analysis of its failures. Or any hint that they might be a warning to us here.
When the cracks began to appear in the Far East, the Minister for Finance comforted Irish audiences with a thoughtful analysis: sure, it won't make much difference to us here, he said.
Colm McCarthy seems to have much the same view of Russia. When he was asked about it some weeks ago he sniffed at the size of the economy: small by European standards, he said. And George Lee of RTE yesterday added that if it fell off the face of the earth no one would notice.
Russia, you may need to remind yourself, is the biggest country in the world, has a population of 150 million and holds the capacity to destroy the planet five times over.
What matter. The ideology of the right marches on, ignorant, intolerant and increasingly influential.
We've just seen its version of morality among the cultural defenders of the United States, who think it more Christian to make war than to make love and who prefer to promote gun sales than health care.
Like our own ideologues of the right, they believe in an ism which begins - and ends - with self-interest; and the idea of contributing to a community goes against the grain.
Needless to say, our resistance to social responsibility has not been analysed or exposed. Our media have devoted more time and space to prurient discussion of Bill Clinton's personal affairs than to the housing crisis.
Everyone gossips about the crisis; it is seldom discussed, perhaps because it clearly illustrates what is wrong with the right.
The building industry has a poor safety record; it often exploits its own workers and is, in turn, exploited by layers of unscrupulous middle-men. The industry's social role is rarely discussed.
But when RTE's Prime Time finally decided to devote a disorganised programme to it, the Government was not there.
Noel Dempsey turned up next morning for a cosy chat with Pat Kenny, during which they agreed that it was a difficult problem. Could have a devastating effect for years, Noel said.
Pat sighed and asked what had been done. Oh, a lot of things, Noel said. They had Peter Bacon's report. Noel himself had taken action. Sent out a circular to local authorities.
What about rent control, Pat asked.
Noel murmured something about the Constitution, hinted that they did not want a totalitarian state. Or to interfere with the market. Of course not.
Goodbye, Noel. Goodbye, Pat.
A week earlier, in another chat, this one on television, Michael Somers came up with an amazing insight. A friend had told him the price of a house these days was many times the cost of building it.
Someone, somewhere, he thought, must be making a lot of money. Sound man, Michael. If he keeps this up, he may one day become chief executive of the National Treasury Management Agency.
I suppose we must wait for another blinding flash to discover that one of the closest relationships in public life is between Fianna Fail and the building industry.