Trade unions have called off public sector strikes next Wednesday and will enter an intensive process of talks about talks with Government, facilitated by an independent chairman/woman, in an attempt to unblock formal negotiations on a new pay agreement.
The Government announced on Friday evening it would enter a “focused and intensive exercise” with unions, assisted by Workplace Relations Commission chairman Kevin Foley, in an attempt to agree a basis for formal negotiations on a new public sector wage deal.
In a co-ordinated move, the public services committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions said in a statement that following discussions “over the last 24 hours ... the Ictu PSC [Public Services Committee] has agreed to suspend strike action due to take place next Wednesday”.
However, while next week’s stoppage has been suspended, the work-to-rule action will continue.
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The talks are likely to begin on Saturday. They will be conducted by Irish Congress of Trade Unions general secretary Owen Reidy, secretary general of the Department of the Environment Oonagh Buckley and Foley
The agreement was brokered after back-channel communications between Government and unions in recent days.
Fórsa chief and PSC chairman Kevin Callinan told RTÉ he had “a long conversation” with Taoiseach Micheál Martin, who phoned him from Brussels, in which it was “impressed upon him the way in which cost-of-living pressures were affecting our members. And I believe now that the Government have been listening. Obviously, we need to test that in practice in a talks process.”
Later, Callinan said: “It’s good to get this much agreed. There has been a lot of hard work done behind the scenes to agree on a way forward. We’ll see now where it goes.”
Tánaiste Simon Harris welcomed the development and said he hoped “we will all be able to find a way forward, which allows for the parties to reach a mutually agreeable outcome”.
Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers said there was a genuine commitment to dialogue and he hoped that “this initiative will now allow both sides to move forward together into meaningful negotiation”.
Siptu organiser Adrian Kane said: “There’s no doubt that 300,000 workers being out in the streets on Wednesday concentrated minds. We’re hopeful now that further strikes won’t be required, but they remain an option … next week’s has only been suspended.”
