Public Service Agreement 2024 – 2026

Please note schools will receive a stock of our informational Eolas and not one per member in the school. All members with a valid email on file will receive a copy of the Eolas to their email in our weekly all-member email on Tuesday, 27 February.

Read the full text of the proposed agreement.

Introduction

A new public sector pay agreement has been negotiated. The proposed agreement was published on Friday 26 January 2024, following two months of challenging negotiations.

Going into the negotiations the union side had a clear set of priorities agreed by the Public Services Committee of ICTU on 27 September 2023: that any new agreement would address the rising cost of living, especially for low- to middle-earners, that it would contain provisions to allow for the normalisation of industrial relations, that it would contain a measure to stabilise the agreement through the inclusion of a local bargaining clause, and that proposals for future-proofing public services would be considered.

The talks adjourned on 10 January after union negotiators rejected a Government offer totalling 8.5%. It is the view of the negotiators that the agreement reached on Friday 26 January represents the “maximum achievable through negotiation at this moment.”

The improvements in the pay adjustments due in 2024 – valued at 4.25% for the year – would mean that public service workers would receive more money in the first year than originally envisaged in the Government’s initial pay offer, providing a noticeable difference in pay this year at a time when workers are still feeling the impact of three consecutive years of inflation.

The pay provisions in each year of the agreement will deliver more for lower-paid workers.

It’s never been more important – or easier – to get the protections and benefits of union membership.

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Online ballot

The upcoming INTO ballot on the pay agreement will be held online. The ballot will be open from Monday, 4 March to Thursday, 14 March 2024 inclusive.

An online vote will be sent on Monday, 4 March from our online ballot company Civica Election Services (CES) (from the email takepart@cesvotes.com) to every member for whom we hold a current email address. Please check your junk/spam folder if this email does not appear in your inbox.

To check whether we have your current email address and to update your email address, please log on to your portal account – www.into.ie/join/login. If you have not registered for the portal or have issues logging in, please contact portal@into.ie.

Alternatively, if you still cannot access the portal and need to update your email address, please contact ballots@into.ie with the following details as soon as possible, but no later than close of business Monday, 11 March 2024:

  1. Your name
  2. Payroll number (unique identifier found on your payslip)
  3. School roll number
  4. Preferred email address

Further information on the draft agreement will be available on the INTO website.

Eolas

Click on the image below to read the Eolas. Tá leagan Ghaeilge ar fáil sa dhoiciméad céanna (lch 5). 

The result of the ballot will be announced on Friday, 15 March.

Communication by email

Members may also consent to receive other communications from the INTO. These include a weekly newsletter which contains important updates on INTO events and other related matters. If you do not currently receive these communications but wish to do so, please log on to the portal as outlined above and update your communications preferences. Alternatively, please contact portal@into.ie.

Frequently asked questions

If the agreement is ratified by the majority of  members of public sector unions affiliated to ICTU, following their ballots, the agreement would cover the period from 1 January 2024 to 30 June 2026.
The union’s elected Central Executive Committee gave detailed consideration to the proposals and  decided to recommend acceptance of the proposed new public service deal to members.

INTO members will ultimately decide whether or not the union will back the new agreement. This will be done through a national ballot from 4-14 March inclusive.

The proposed Public Sector Pay adjustments for the period 1 January 2024 to 30 June 2026 are as follows:

2024

  • A general round increase in annualised basic salary for all public servants of 2.25% or €1,125, whichever is greater, from 1 January 2024
  • A general round increase in annualised basic salary for all public servants of 1% on 1 June 2024
  • A general round increase in annualised basic salary for all public servants of 1% or €500, whichever is greater, on 1 October 2024.

2025

  • A general round increase in annualised basic salary for all public servants of 2% or €1,000, whichever is greater, on 1 March 2025
  • A general round increase in annualised basic salary for all public servants of 1% on 1 August 2025
  • The first phase of local bargaining of 1% on 1 September 2025

2026

  • A general round increase in annualised basic salary for all public servants of 1% or €500, whichever is greater, on 1 February 2026
  • A general round increase in annualised basic salary for all public servants of 1% on 1 June 2026.

The pay proposals are estimated to be worth up to 10.75% for a new entrant teacher. This is because the flat-rate elements of the pay deal are worth more to public servants earning below €50k per annum. The benefit is greater for incomes below this level.

For INTO members earning €50k or more the salary increases accrue to 9.62% by 1 June 2026.

If the proposed agreement is accepted, unions will not be able to lodge any ‘cost-increasing’ claims for improvements in pay or conditions during the lifetime of the agreement. However, there are specific provisions for local bargaining.

A local bargaining clause is different to the sectoral bargaining arrangements that were included in Building Momentum. Local bargaining terms included in the agreement would allow trade unions to negotiate up to an additional 3% of pay costs, inclusive of allowances, for particular grades, groups or categories of employee.

Detailed arrangements for local bargaining are to be agreed by the 30th of June this year. Local negotiations could then take place between July 2024 and June 2025. To the greatest extent possible agreements would be secured through direct negotiations.

This process will provide opportunities for specific groups, grades and categories to deal with issues of particular concern, including structural changes, and to have those addressed through the additional 3% secured under the terms of the new agreement.

While 1% is payable of 1 September 2025, the remaining balance of 2% will be due to be implemented during the term of the next successor agreement. The local bargaining fund for INTO members is circa €100 million of which €33 million would be applied from 1 September 2025.

Implementation of adjustments will be on a phased basis. The first instalment, equivalent to 1% of the basic pay cost, will be implemented on 1 September 2025 and the remaining 2% will fall to be addressed in any successor pay agreement.

1% of the total primary payroll (€33 million) can be used to address a number of claims for primary teachers, with a further 2% (€67 million) committed for the same purpose in the following agreement which would commence on 1 July 2026.

Issues aimed at standardising certain terms and conditions across grades and sectors of the public service will be excluded from local bargaining, including: overtime rates; weekly hours of attendance; sick leave entitlements; and pension arrangements.

The INTO will consult with members regarding their priorities for local bargaining in April and May and we will liaise with fellow education unions.

Following these consultations the CEC will decide in June which claims to  lodge in July 2024.

Negotiations with DE concerning INTO claims will take place between July 2024 and June 2025. The parties will endeavour, to the greatest extent possible, to reach agreement through direct negotiation.

Where agreement cannot be reached and local engagement has been fully exhausted, the matters of disagreement will proceed to conciliation at the Teachers’ Conciliation Council.

DE will be required to verify with DPENDPR the costings and policy impacts of INTO claims being agreed to progress during the lifetime of the proposed new agreement prior to the first payment date for local bargaining of 1 September 2025.

The increases will apply to pensionable allowances.
If the proposed agreement is accepted, pay adjustments will be delivered through revised pay scales. Part-time workers and others who don’t work full-time hours will get pro-rata adjustments based on the number of hours they work.
The change agenda in this agreement is an extension of requirements to cooperate with current initiatives in primary and special education. An appendix on the education reform agenda includes curriculum reform; literacy and numeracy strategy; digital, STEM, Education for Sustainable Development,  Gaeltacht education strategies, Languages Connect and the Cineáltas anti-bullying policy together with engagement between union officials and the Department of Education on the review of the EPSEN Act and advice on Inclusive Education.
One of the agreed priorities for the union side going into negotiations was the normalisation of public service industrial relations through the repeal of emergency legislation put in place during the financial crisis in 2009.

This legislation is known as FEMPI, which stands for Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No 2) Act 2009. The vast majority of FEMPI measures have now been repealed, however some elements remain in place.

Section 4 of this legislation centralised control in the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery, and Reform (DPENDPDR) to an excessive extent. This was stopping ordinary industrial relations from progressing, even when there was agreement between employers and unions. Before section 4 was introduced, public bodies could decide to increase pay with the consent of the appropriate Minister and the approval of the Finance Minister.

With this level of central control being exerted by one Department the statutory system of industrial relations, including the Workplace Relations Commission, the Labour Court, and even in some instances, conciliation and arbitration schemes, couldn’t work as they are meant to.

Getting rid of what remains of FEMPI would allow industrial relations to return to pre-recession norms.

In November the Minister indicated that he would commit to the repeal of section 4(2) of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No 2) Act 2009 (FEMPI), in the context of the agreement and ratification of a multi-annual pay agreement. The union side had made it clear that without this commitment its focus would be on a shorter deal.

The government side has said it will move fast on its commitment to repealing section 4(2) following ratification of the proposed agreement.

The proposed agreement contains a simplified dispute resolution process compared to Building Momentum with clearer roles for the Workplace Relations Commission and the Labour Court (or Conciliation and Arbitration schemes where appropriate). This will also contribute to the normalisation of industrial relations.

Going into the negotiations the union side had a clear set of priorities agreed by the Public Services Committee of ICTU on 27 September 2023:

  • that any new agreement would address the rising cost of living, especially for low-to middle- earners,
  • that it would contain provisions to allow for the normalisation of industrial relations,
  • that it would contain a measure to stabilise the agreement through the inclusion of a local bargaining clause, and
  • that proposals for future proofing public services would be considered.

The 19 ICTU unions, all of whose members are still obliged to do Croke Park hours, did not include the removal of these hours as a central aspect of the framework for negotiations. However, the INTO does intend to engage with the Department of Education to seek a more flexible approach to the use of these hours.

Every public service agreement has included restrictions on industrial action on matters covered by the agreement, and this agreement is no exception. The agreement sets out a simplified dispute resolution process, compared to the previous Building Momentum agreement, including an ‘industrial peace’ clause.
Like the previous agreement, Building Momentum, the proposed new agreement contains the same provision to review the terms of the agreement “where the underlying assumptions of the agreement need to be revisited.” This provision, for example, enabled unions to seek review of Building Momentum in 2022 because of high and sustained inflation, which was not anticipated when that agreement was negotiated in 2020.
The negotiators secured a commitment that the pay increases would be applied to public service pensions for the duration of the agreement. In the main, this means that pension payments will be adjusted in line with pay adjustments for serving staff.
The Building Momentum agreement expired on 31 December 2023. If the proposed new agreement is rejected by the majority of affiliate unions, there will continue to be no public service agreement in place

Union negotiators advised affiliate unions last month that the pay terms of the new agreement represented the “absolute maximum achievable” through negotiations at this time and are the outcome of a challenging negotiations process. Union negotiators don’t believe it would be possible to achieve a better outcome by agreement.

In the event of a rejection of the proposals, consideration would need to be given to a campaign of industrial action aimed at securing better terms.

The 19 affiliate unions have commenced preparations for their ballots after the terms of the new agreement were considered by each union’s national executive. The Public Services Committee will meet on 25 March to aggregate the results of all ballots , after which the ICTU Public Services Committee will accept or reject the package on the basis of aggregated union ballot results.

The ICTU Public Service Committee (PSC) represents all 19 ICTU-affiliated unions with members in the civil and public service. It decides through a weighted aggregate of the outcomes of all the union ballots, which means the voting strength of each union is determined by the number of members it has in the civil and public service.

Should the proposed agreement be ratified on 25 March it would be anticipated that the first payment of 2.25% or €1125 (whichever is greater) would be made to primary teachers in late April or early May 2024 backdated to 1 January 2024.

Read the full text of the proposed agreement here.

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