IRELAND
Ireland’s Public Service confrontation with the Government has escalated, with another union demanding cuts in pay and conditions imposed in the wake of the Global Financial Crisis be swept away.
The Association of Higher Civil and Public Servants (AHCPS) called for “accelerated restoration of pay” for its members at its annual conference in Dublin.
The Association, which represents members at Assistant Principal Officer or Principal Officer level, discussed motions dealing with pay, a return to flexible working hours and freedom to engage in political activity, which is currently banned under the Civil Service Code of Conduct.
General Secretary of the AHCPS, Ciaran Rohan (pictured) said it was now 11 years since members had a pay increase and it would be 13 years by the time the final scheduled restoration payments under theFinancial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) were made, in 2021.
“Since the FEMPI cuts were introduced, the cost of living has increased by 6 per cent and it continues to rise, and the cost of everyday essentials like housing, food and childcare is also increasing,” Mr Rohan said.
“It is widely accepted and acknowledged that higher paid members of the Civil and Public Service are earning less than they would be if they were in the private sector, and that gap is only widening.”
This development comes just days after the country’s largest public sector union, Fórsa, called for an end to additional unpaid hours for its workers, which were also imposed as part of the FEMPI.
In addition, the independent Public Service Commission has recommended pay for the country’s Defence Forces be increased to pre-crisis levels.
Dublin, 15 May 2019
