Politics

Pressure is on to seal €22bn public sector wage deal before Christmas

Percentage of pay increase to be granted to workers in years ahead is key factor in negotiations with unions

Kevin Callinan, President of ICTU: “We are hoping to inject a sense of urgency into the next round of talks, and to make real progress on finalising a deal.” Picture: RollingNews

Negotiators are set for a “crunch day” of talks over the state’s €22 billion public sector wage bill tomorrow, as the pressure mounts to secure a deal ahead of Christmas.

As D-Day looms for the talks, there is a growing view on both sides of the negotiating table that if the outline of a deal is not clear by tomorrow it will become very difficult to strike a deal before the existing Building Momentum pay ...