A PROCESS aimed at clarifying elements of the proposed public service pay and reform deal is to get under way in the coming days.
Nursing unions have been called to the Labour Relations Commission next Tuesday for clarification of a number of issues.
Speaking following a meeting of the executive council of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) yesterday, its general secretary David Begg said union leaders believed it would be beneficial if clarification and elaboration of some aspects of the agreement could be provided.
He said the Government appeared “receptive” to such a move. Mr Begg ruled out the prospect of any renegotiation of the deal as part of the new process of clarification.
Among the areas where the unions are expected to seek the Government to make its intentions more explicit are the repayment of money lost in the recent pay cuts and guarantees that there will be no compulsory redundancies.
Union leaders may also press for a new overarching statement of the principles being followed in the agreement. Ictu president Jack O’Connor said a number of people had formed the view that “they could be kicked from pillar to post in this reorganisation”.
“That is not what our negotiators agreed to nor is what the people on the other side envisage because they know that any such development would bring about the collapse of it. But nonetheless that fear persists and it would be useful if it was made clear to people in the form of a statement that would be written down that that is not what is envisaged and that the objective of the exercise is to achieve a reorganisation in the public interest in a manner that is compatible with the interest of the people who work in the public service,” he said.
Mr Begg said as a result of the legacy of distrust with the Government, many union members were placing “the worst possible interpretation” on some elements of the deal.
“In a general sense, what seems to be the problem is not that there is a huge overwhelming call for clarification but there is a sense that it would help in particular cases.”
Mr Begg said among the areas where the unions would seek clarification were those that were “heavily based on the bona fides of the Government side”. He said the process would be aimed at looking to see “if they could be stated in more explicit way and give more comfort to people”.
Taoiseach Brian Cowen said yesterday the Croke Park deal was “ a very important pillar in our effort to develop confidence internally in the country about the direction in which we are going.
“We’ve seen a lot of support externally for the direction the Government is taking, the steps that we’re asking, the sacrifices of all our people at this time.
“But I think we also know if we are to move out of where we are we have to generate growth in the economy, we have to provide confidence and we have to ensure that those who are in the business of developing exports, and creating jobs and maintaining jobs do so against a background of a balanced approach to where we’re at.”