This section of the proposed agreement concerns certain measures introduced under the 2013 Haddington Road Agreement (HRA) and still in force. The measures to be taken under this agreement are overtime hours introduced under the HRA, as well as the payment of overtime and bonuses. Therefore: overtime and bonuses that have been reduced or eliminated under the RHS will be fully restored by July 1, 2021. This includes “twilight payments” in health care. With respect to overtime, the proposed agreement stipulates that all costs resulting from this measure must be managed within the limits of overtime budgets. The proposed new salary deal for civil servants will cost more than €900 million over a three-year period, the Ministry of Public Expenditure said. These guidelines replace the Public Service Commissioner`s April 2020 guidelines on wage restraint. It will enter into force with the GWPS on industrial relations expectations for the public sector and will be reviewed in mid-2023. An additional €237 million – equivalent to an additional 1% surcharge – will be made available to a new sector fund to deal with premiums, obligations and claims in parts of the civil service. It could also be used for a general increase in the number of staff in certain sectors.
If ratified, the agreement would provide for the creation of a “sectoral bargaining fund”, which would initially amount to 1% of the basic pensionable salary for the duration of the agreement. It is not possible to increase the allocation by proposing productivity measures. Nor can the process “lead to unintended results of increased costs.” Every utility agreement contains restrictions on industrial action, and Building Momentum is no exception. The agreement provides for a detailed dispute settlement procedure, including a “labour peace clause”. The new public sector wage agreement for around 340,000 civil servants will be formally ratified by the unions on Tuesday. The proposed agreement identifies a number of issues that the independent body must consider, including the cost and service implications of managing HRA hours. These are set out in section four of the proposed agreement. On the 28th. In April 2020, the Public Service Commissioner issued guidelines for the application of wage restraints until June 2021, after a Cabinet decision was made that a visible wage restraint in the public sector was an appropriate response to the impact of COVID-19. “It was a firm goal of the government to reach an agreement to maintain the momentum of reform and change that the public service is exemplifying during this public health emergency, and that was built into the agreement,” McGrath said.
The allocation of tools for craftsmen will be reduced to the 2012 level when the proposed agreement is ratified. It also proposes reforms to working practices, including allowing temporary transfers where necessary and increasing the mobility of public sector staff where necessary. This suggests that there may be longer opening hours for some services. This can be used to deal with judgments, recommendations, awards and outstanding rights relevant to specific grades, groups or categories of workers in different sectors of the public service. There will be a vote of the members of Fórsa who will fall under the agreement. The union will decide whether the union supports the acceptance or rejection of the package. The proposed agreement was rejected by members of the second-level teachers` union, ASTI, the Irish Medical Organisation and the organisation representing scientists in medical laboratories. The leadership of the Teachers` Union of Ireland has urged its members to vote against the proposed deal. However, it has not yet reached a vote on the agreement. The deal will cost $906 million. EUR or the equivalent of about 4% of the public sector wage bill in 2021, spread over three years. Determination of wage rates for public sector workers represented by a trade union.
Access and update of public sector workers` wage details, what to do in case of wage problems, changes in the work situation and remuneration, news and progress in wages The ICTU said the agreement included strong protection against privatization and outsourcing of public services. Measures introduced under the Haddington Roads Agreement in 2013 will be reviewed. File photo: Getty Look at the rates of pay for high school and post-secondary students working in the federal public service. Fórsa Secretary General Kevin Callinan said the new agreement would strengthen stability in the delivery of public services this year and next. IRISH CIVIL SERVANTS WILL RECEIVE PAY RISES OF UP TO 3% WITHIN TWO YEARS, AFTER UNIONS TODAY VOTED OVERWHELMINGLY IN FAVOUR OF THE NEW PUBLIC SECTOR WAGE DEAL. The proposed agreement also includes a provision for a review of its words “where the assumptions underlying the agreement need to be revised”. Fórsa insisted that these issues be addressed in the agreement for the sake of fairness, as wage cuts for high earners and other measures introduced under the HRA have been (or need to be addressed), while these measures – which have fallen on middle and lower incomes – have not. It applies to the decision-making of public service bodies on remuneration, other public authorities are invited to take these guidelines into account in their decision-making.
If the proposed agreement is passed, unions will not be able to make allegations of improvements in wages or working conditions that “increase costs” during the term of the agreement. Public Spending and Reform Minister Michael McGrath said he was confident the deal would bring stability to public servants and the public who use the services they provide. Like the current Public Service Stability Agreement (PSA), the proposed new agreement includes a provision to review the terms of the agreement “where the assumptions underlying the agreement need to be revised.” However, union negotiators successfully insisted that the wording of the ASSP, which specifically linked this to a deterioration in the economic situation, be removed. This creates an opportunity to call for a revision of the package if the economic situation improves beyond expectations. A fund of €150 million will be set up to cover all operating costs arising from the recommendations on the future of these hours during the term of the agreement. Overtime has become a major point of contention for a number of key public sector unions in recent years. “Fórsa will now ensure that the agreement is fully implemented and that it works for those who use and provide public services. This is a relatively short two-year agreement, which means that negotiations on a possible successor are expected to start in the middle of next year,” he said, saying no sectoral or variety-based claims outside this process will be allowed during the term of the agreement.
This is an essential protection, as abolishing the labour cost regime would effectively mean that the majority of business cases would support outsourcing and lead to the privatisation of public services – on the basis of the minimum wage and low-level labour protection rights – regardless of the impact on the quality of service and the protection of workers. Fórsa has already submitted a request to the Workplace Relations Commission (CMR) to abolish the 72 hours. And while the proposed agreement does not abolish hours, it commits the Ministry of Education to a serious review of the use of hours, which will open up a broader discussion about the role of ANS. The unions said the proposed deal, which would run from January 1 to the end of 2022 if ratified, was primarily aimed at low-income civil servants and civil servants. The “72 hours” for Assistants with Special Needs (SNA) were introduced under the 2010 Croke Park Agreement and not the 2013 Haddington Road Agreement. They replaced an existing contractual obligation to work six days during school holidays. Issues such as unpaid overtime for staff, originally introduced as part of the Haddington Road agreement in 2013 and which unions wanted to address, are being investigated as part of a review due to start in March. A €150 million fund will be set up for issues arising from this review. In addition, a new independent body will be set up to investigate overtime without additional pay introduced for public sector groups under the previous Haddington Road agreement in 2013. Due to a trade union application, the annual fee for the registration of health and social service workers with the CORU under the Haddington Road Agreement and subsequent national agreements was reduced from €295 to €100. The upper limit of €100 remains in place if Building Momentum is accepted.
A similar freeze applies to nursing and midwifery registration fees. A feature of the proposed agreement is the establishment of sectoral collective agreements. A sectoral bargaining fund, which initially amounts to 1 per cent of the basic pensionable salary during the term of the agreement, will aim to deal with outstanding decisions, recommendations, arbitral awards and claims in various parts of the civil service. Alternatively, the sector fund could be used for a staff salary increase in certain areas. Thirteen of the 17 unions affiliated to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, which together represent the majority of Irish civil servants, ratified the Building Momentum package at a meeting this morning. . . .