Public sector pay talks resume in Dublin this morning. RTE reported at 7.33am that unions and Government representatives will continue their engagement with an independent group chaired by Kevin Foley, chair of the Workplace Relations Commission. The meetings were adjourned on Saturday evening. They are a search for a path back to negotiation. A deal is still ahead of both sides. The 24-hour strike on Thursday 12 November is still the unions' position, and it still falls on the day about 50 leaders gather in the city for the European Political Community.
Kevin Callinan, general secretary of Forsa and chair of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions public services committee, says the unions want a better deal than the last agreement. That deal was worth 10.25 per cent over two and a half years and expired at the end of June. RTE reports that unions rejected a Government offer understood to be worth 7.75 per cent over two and a half years: 1.75 per cent from 1 November 2026, then 5 per cent across 2027 and 2028, plus 1 per cent for local bargaining. Forsa has warned members that some public descriptions of the offer are inaccurate. The number in circulation is the one RTE says was turned down. The unions' own line is shorter. They say the Government has not made a credible offer.
Eight rallies, and a city already closing roads
Thursday's action is a stoppage with rallies, not a day of pickets outside every workplace. From noon to 2pm there are demonstrations in Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Waterford, Sligo, Tullamore and Letterkenny. The Dublin rally is the largest, and it may run from O'Connell Street to Government Buildings. The logistics are still being settled. Road closures for the summit will already be in place. Taoiseach Micheál Martin hosts leaders at the Convention Centre on the north quays, and a dinner at the National Gallery on Thursday evening. Who speaks for Europe on Ukraine is on Friday's informal agenda. The pay dispute is on Thursday's streets.
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has told members the strike notification runs from the start of shifts on Thursday until 5pm. Emergency care continues. Derogations are being agreed with the HSE and managed nationally. The work-to-rule already in force stays in place before, during and after the strike. Strike committees remain at base on the day so that emergency cover can be coordinated, while members who are not providing that cover are expected at the nearest rally. Friday's note named the eight towns. Sunday does not add a ninth. It adds another morning with the mediators.
Where Sunday's Talks Sit
- Foley's group meets both sides again this morning, after adjourning on Saturday night.
- The last deal was 10.25 per cent over two and a half years. It expired at the end of June.
- RTE reports a rejected offer understood to be 7.75 per cent over two and a half years.
- The strike is Thursday 12 November, noon to 2pm, in eight towns.
- More than 300,000 public sector workers struck for 24 hours last month.
What happens if Thursday goes ahead
Callinan has already described the step after this one. If the strike takes place, the unions will intensify the work-to-rule and look at further industrial action. He said that could mean rolling strikes in individual parts of the public service, rather than another single national day. Last month more than 300,000 workers walked out for 24 hours. A second date was suspended so that talks could start. The work-to-rule never stopped. Monday's announcement of 12 November put the second date back on the calendar. Nothing said on Sunday morning has taken it off.
A pathway, if Foley finds one, would still have to survive a vote. Until a credible offer exists in a form both sides will put to their principals, the practical map of Thursday is the one the unions published: do not attend, do not work from home, do not open the systems, and be at a rally between noon and two. Emergency cover is the exception. The summit is not.