THE ASSOCIATION of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors has voted in favour of the Croke Park deal on public sector pay and reform by a majority of more than six to one.
The union, which has about 2,500 members, voted to ratify the proposed deal by a margin of 86 per cent to 14 per cent.
“The agreement is very far from being perfect, a fact which we pointed out to our members prior to the ballot,” general secretary Joe Dirwan said.
He said members had voted to accept their share of the sacrifice needed to put the economy of the country back on track. They now expected all sectors to pay a fair share, “especially the high earners and those who brought us to the brink of bankruptcy in the first place”.
The Irish Congress of Trade Union is to meet later this month to make a final decision to accept or reject the deal based on a majority vote of constituent unions. Each union will be given a “weight” to take account of the size of the membership.
Ballots by Siptu, which has more than 70,000 public service members, and Impact, which has about 65,000 members, will most likely decide the future of the deal.
