Growing hope public pay talks may soon resume

There is a growing hope that public pay talks could resume before the weekend after indications that the Government is preparing to approach the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).

Sources on the union side of negotiations, who walked away from a deal offering 5 per cent pay increases on top of what was already in an existing agreement, said they now expect a resumption of talks.

“It looks like Government is prepared to move its position,” one well-placed source said, citing an interview with Tánaiste Leo Varadkar on RTÉ's Morning Ireland.

Will the government take any pre-budget action?

Listen | 40:35

Jennifer Bray, Jack Horgan-Jones and Irish Times Economics Correspondent Eoin Burke-Kennedy join Pat Leahy to discuss the long wait until October's budget and the mounting pressure on political leaders to ease the cost of living for Irish households. The group also discuss the proposed pay rises for top earning public servants, which is expected to provoke a strong backlash from Opposition politicians and the public.

Mr Varadkar said the intention, which had been discussed at Government level, was to “re-engage and make a further offer”.

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Government sources were more guarded on Wednesday afternoon, however, saying contacts were ongoing but that no date had been set for formal talk. “I don’t think we’re hung up on getting it started before the weekend,” one source said.

The timetable to secure a deal is tight, with unions having to ballot members – including teachers’ unions – over the summer, and the Government keen to tie down the implications of a pay deal before budget negotiations begin in earnest.

Speaking on RTÉ Radio’s Morning Ireland on Wednesday, Mr Varadkar said he was hopeful a pay agreement for the public service could be agreed in talks at the WRC.

It was the Government’s intention to “re-engage” and to make further offers. These workers who “work very hard to look after us very well” were deserving of pay increases, Mr Varadkar.

There would be three elements of any agreement to ensure maximum benefit – tax reform, the social wage (how much people take home) and reducing costs such as childcare, the Tánaiste said, adding: “We do want an agreement.”

The Tánaiste also said while the Government does not plan interventions on the rising costs of living before budget day, he could not “definitively rule out” any action.

If there was a “dramatic escalation” in fuel prices then the Government would have to intervene. Planning was ongoing on the autumn budget, which would include immediate measures to assist the public and ensure the country did not slip back into recession, he said.

In response to comments by European Commissioner Mairead McGuinness who warned about the possibility of fuel rationing in the future, Mr Varadkar said the Government had contingency plans in place.

The problem at present was the price of fuel not supply, he said, adding there was a 90-day reserve that would provide a cushion.

The Tánaiste also defended the Government’s move to award a pay increase of up to 15 per cent for top-earning public servants – including judges, hospital consultants and many senior public officials. The move affects 4,000 public servants earning in excess of €150,000 and will apply from next week.

Pay restoration is the last phase of the unwinding of pay cuts imposed on public servants during the financial crisis, 10 years ago, he said.

The restoration date, which is July 1st, was set in legislation in 2017. The Government sought legal advice about the possibility of deferring the increase but was warned it would be difficult to justify a deferral in court.

The cost of childcare in Ireland at present was “so out of line” and needed to be addressed by way of better pay and conditions for staff in the sector, significantly lower fees for parents, and higher standards, Mr Varadkar said. The National Childcare Subsidy would do that and would benefit more people rather than tax breaks that tended to benefit higher-paid people more, he said.

Echoing Mr Varakdar’s view on pay for senior public servants, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said there could be “no circumventing” of a legal obligation to restore the pay levels.

Speaking to reporters on a visit to Baxter Healthcare, Castlebar, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, Mr Martin said the pay restoration had been supported by Sinn Féin and the trade union movement.

“There is no circumventing of the legal obligations on Government to fulfil by law what the Government has to do,” he said.

Mr Martin, who is due to fly to Brussels on Thursday, said it looks now as if the application of Ukraine for EU membership would be supported by existing bloc members.

Asked if he would be travelling to Ukraine personally, the Taoiseach replied: “These are things we keep under constant review. I had a good discussion yesterday [Tuesday] with president Zelenskiy. I have kept in regular contact with all members of the Ukrainian government.”