The public service has a great deal more to do in terms of flexibility, modernisation and productivity, the Taoiseach has said.
Bertie Ahern called on the public service and its representatives to re-commit to the change and modernisation programme as set out in the new partnership agreement Towards 2016 in order to provide a "first-class" service to the public.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern
Addressing a Labour Relations Commission conference in Dublin on New Perspectives on Workplace Change, Mr Ahern said the social partnership system had proven its worth as an instrument of "necessary change".
However, he called for more partnership and dialogue in the workplace, for more attention to resolving or preventing workplace disputes and for "more openness to change".
Mr Ahern noted the number of days lost to industrial action fell to just under 27,000 last year from 260,000 in 1987.
"That is due to social partnership and to the work of Ibec and Ictu in social partnership but it is also in no small part due to your vital role in the social partnership system," he told delegates at the LRC event.
Mr Ahern said workplace change was "critical to our continuing viability as an economy and society". He said the Government had launched the National Workplace Strategy last year to support and drive change and innovation.
"The National Workplace Strategy recognises that the level and pace of innovation needed in Irish workplaces will in turn require the development of more effective partnership-style approaches," Mr Ahern said.
Returning to issues he raised yesterday in an address to the European Commission in Brussels, Mr Ahern highlighted competitive pressure on the economy from lower-cost countries such as India and China, as well as from other EU member states.
"Whatever business we are in - whether it's in the private or public sector - we have to keep the big picture in mind," he said.
"If we do not change and keep changing the business that we do and the way we do business, there are plenty of people out there who are more than willing to take our business and our customers away from us."
Mr Ahern said the public service change and modernisation programme, underway for ten years, was "making a difference".
"But there is no doubt that there is a great deal more to be done in terms of flexibility, modernisation and productivity."
He noted "unprecedented" levels of funding in public services.
"We are making huge capital investments in school buildings and in healthcare facilities - often in the form of expensive specialist equipment. For the sake of our citizens, we need to ensure that the return on their investment is maximised. This includes ensuring that the facilities are used to their fullest potential," he said.
"It means ensuring that the full range of services needed by people is available when they are needed - including at weekends and outside traditional office hours," he said.
The Taoiseach called for more flexible approaches, local-level engagement and for more change and innovation, particularly in Information and Communications Technology (ICT).
And he said there needed to be a new approach to leadership development in the public service, giving potential leaders "richer development opportunities earlier in their careers".