Minister has less than 24 hours to make credible move on public sector pay talks – Nash
Minister has less than 24 hours to make credible move on public sector pay talks – Nash - The Labour Party
Labour finance spokesperson Ged Nash TD has called on the Minister for Public Expenditure to make a substantive move within the next 24 hours to help resolve the public sector pay dispute.
Speaking following Labour’s Dáil motion on public sector pay today, following yesterday’s nationwide strike, Deputy Nash demanded that government explicitly prioritises pay in any negotiation, and commits to the principle of pay increases that outpace inflation.
Deputy Nash said:
“The Minister has a narrow window to make a credible proposal that opens the way for meaningful talks and to avert next week’s strike. Public sector workers will judge him by what he does in the coming hours. These are the people we depend on to deliver our health, education, welfare and council services. They deserve an employer who takes their concerns seriously and who recognises what rising living costs mean for their wages and their families.
“Minister Chambers’ dismissive, dog in a manger attitude since the expiry of the last deal in June has resulted in him becoming the biggest recruiter of new members for trade unions. His handling of this dispute is bringing a new generation into trade union membership and activism. Workers are seeing the importance of standing together to protect their pay and living standards.
“I am hopeful that the presence of the Minister in the Dáil to respond to Labour’s motion is a signal that he is now serious about cresting the conditions for talks to commence.
“Our motion seeks to be constructive. We believe that one of the things that is required to break the impasse is the unequivocal prioritisation of the question of pay, and also a commitment to unions on the principle that future pay increases will outpace inflation and that the erosion of the value of wages since the previous deal was allowed to elapse last June, will be addressed. Workers need to know that an agreement will protect and improve their living standards.”