The Government has allocated €1.2 billion in the Budget towards a new public sector pay deal, as industrial action by public service workers continues to escalate.
The funding will cover all elements of the previous public service agreement, which expired at the end of June, as well as any successor pay agreement expected to take effect in 2027.
The Department of Public Expenditure said the allocation will also cover any associated pension costs arising from a new agreement.
Public sector workers have been engaged in industrial action since last week, with unions introducing a work-to-rule as part of a wider dispute over pay and working conditions. Further strike action has been planned for 14 October and 21 October unless progress is made in negotiations.
Unions have accused the Government of failing to make meaningful commitments on pay since the previous agreement expired, arguing that workers are facing increased living costs and that a new deal must reflect the current economic climate.
Speaking during his Budget address, Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers referred directly to the ongoing industrial action and urged unions to reconsider further disruption.
Mr Chambers said the Government had made a “significant provision” for public service pay in the Budget, describing the allocation as evidence of its commitment to reaching a new agreement.
“I have made significant provision in today's Budget package for public service pay,” he said.
“This demonstrates my seriousness, and indeed the seriousness of Government, in our desire to reach a new agreement that responds to the issues that have been raised.”
The Minister called on the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) and other public service associations to return to negotiations as a matter of urgency and to suspend the current industrial action.
“I would now call on ICTU and other associations to match this intent by re-engaging as a matter of urgency and standing down the ongoing industrial action,” he said.
Mr Chambers also announced changes to the national minimum wage as part of the Budget package. He said the measures would result in a single worker earning a net income of €26,000 seeing their income increase by 5% next year as a result of the minimum wage changes.
However, public sector unions have rejected the Government's €1.2 billion allocation as insufficient to resolve the dispute.
The Public Services Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions said the Government had demonstrated that it had the financial capacity to provide additional funding in other areas of the Budget, but had failed to allocate enough to settle the public sector pay dispute.
“The Government has demonstrated fiscal capacity elsewhere in the Budget but has apparently not allocated enough to resolve a pay dispute that is now escalating,” the committee said.
The unions also questioned whether the funding would be enough to convince workers that the Government is serious about reaching a credible agreement.
“Union members are unlikely to be persuaded by the minister's call on unions to enter talks, while the provision of €1.2bn does not suggest the Government is prepared to negotiate a deal that workers could consider credible in current circumstances,” they said.
The dispute now looks set to continue, with unions maintaining pressure through work-to-rule measures and further strike dates looming unless meaningful progress is made in talks.
More budget news:
