Union leaders representing civil servants in the North today demanded a meeting with Secretary of State Paul Murphy to resolve a long-running pay dispute.
Public service union NIPSA sought the meeting after talks with senior civil service management failed to produce an agreement.
Mr John Corey, NIPSA
General secretary Mr John Corey said a meeting with Mr Murphy was now essential. "We are extremely disappointed to have to report that we were not able to make any more substantive progress.
"It is clear that this dispute will not be resolved with the management side sticking to an arbitrary Treasury cost limit of 3.5 per cent.
"Clearly more funding will be required and we were told this morning this was
a matter for the Secretary of State," he said.
The union has been involved in industrial action, including strikes, since last
December over its claim for a cost of living rise from April 2003.
They say an imposed rise last year was only part of an agreed grading increment and took no account of rises in the cost of living.
Although the union have been trying to negotiate a settlement to their 2003
demand in recent weeks, management have said they will only negotiate the 2004
agreement - but that it might take into account grievances over the previous year's award.
Speaking after the adjournment of the latest talks, Mr John Hunter, permanent secretary at the Department of Finance, said management had undertaken to urgently consider new proposals submitted by NIPSA.
One of the areas of government currently worst affected by the industrial
action are MOT vehicle testing and driving tests, which have been suspended at
most of Northern Ireland's test centres since May by all-out action.