Siptu links talks with Government on pay deal with collective bargaining reforms

The country's largest trade union Siptu has linked any talks with the Government on a deal involving tax cuts in return for a pay freeze to the Coalition introducing promised reforms in relation to collective bargaining rights.

The union said last night that it would continue with its campaign for pay rises in profitable companies and organisations across the economy.

Siptu president Jack O’Connor said the union was not involved in talks of any kind with the Government on a deal offering tax cuts in return for a pay freeze as suggested in some reports over the weekend.

However he said that if the Government honoured its commitment to legislate for collective bargaining, exploratory discussions might be possible “but only on the basis that any outcome would benefit the great majority of our members and citizens generally.”

“We are not involved in talks of any kind with Government or otherwise on such a concept. Moreover, we are not aware of any such talks involving others in the trade union movement. Indeed we are pressing ahead with our strategy to win pay increases in profitable employments across the economy in order to begin the work of recovering ground lost over the crisis years. Apart from securing benefits for the members directly involved, the object is to increase purchasing power thus stimulating domestic demand so as to grow the economy and increase employment.”

The Government is committed to introducing reforms to legislation on collective bargaining rights during the lifetime of the current administration.

Last September the Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore told a union conference that the Department of Jobs was working on proposals in this area and that Minister Richard Bruton would report back to the Cabinet in a few weeks. However little has been heard publicly about the issue since.

Mr O’Connor said Siptu had concluded 188 agreements across the manufacturing sector providing for an annualised 2 per cent on average or a little more.

He said these were constructed on the principle of providing workers with a share in the recovery while simultaneously supporting the medium to long term sustainability of jobs.

He also said the union opposed to any further cutting of public services in order to facilitate tax cuts.

“Tax cuts are often deployed in such a way as to disproportionately benefit the better off. However, tax reductions for people on lower and middle incomes, facilitated by an increased contribution from the wealthy and by economic growth, would actually be quite positive. It would increase the purchasing power of average citizens thus generating jobs and growth. This is the only approach to tax alleviation that we could consider,” he said.

“The only equitable way to reduce the tax burden is by concentrating on widening the bands for the Universal Social Charge or otherwise providing for a refundable child tax credit. This would assist everybody but it would be most effective for those who need it most.”