Taoiseach - Vows No Public Sector Pay Cuts "At All Costs"

Sierra Oscar

I was sort of bemused to read in the paper this morning that Enda Kenny is vowing that no public sector pay cuts will be implemented from here onwards. Now naturally having to reduce pay is not the ideal solution for anyone, but I myself feel that it is becoming inevitable and Enda Kenny is setting himself up for a major fall if he keeps this sort of rhetoric up.

The continual downward revision of economic figures from the DoF is making the Croke Park Agreement an irrevelance now in anycase it would seem . . .

Enda vows no public pay cuts 'at all costs'

Laminations

Did you actually read that article? It's sensationalist in trying to make a story out of 'we have a time window to implement Croke Park, let's do it'. The CP agreement protects pay conditional on reform happening

"The Government is committed to achieving the necessary reforms in the public sector through the Croke Park agreement, which protects pay -- this being conditional on achieving the necessary savings through eliminating waste, increasing efficiencies and securing real reform," a government spokesman said.

They cant implement CP if they are cutting pay, which it says in the article

Senior government sources said the hesitancy to inflict further pain on public servants was part of a carrot and stick approach to achieving the reduction in numbers of 25,000 and wider efficiency reforms, while maintaining industrial peace

Also the 'at all costs' they attribute to Enda wasn't even part of the government memo, it was something a civil servant said.

So to summarise in a less sensationalist manner - pay cuts will happen (possibly at the behest of the IMF) unless Croke Park is implemented in full

super_furry

Six months down the line, 'we don't want to do this but the ECB are making us, be angry at them'.

P. Breathnach

It looks to me like a case of a sub-editor over-egging the pudding.

Read the piece you linked. It does not amount to anything like a "vow" by the Taoiseach; rather it suggests that the preferred option is to achieve the desired savings via the Croke Park Agreement. From the document that is described as a vow, and quoted in the Indo piece:

"(The Government does) not want to see pay cuts happen and we've got a time window now in which to implement in full the (Croke Park) agreement,"

I interpret that as a message saying "we don't want to cut your pay, but...".

Sierra Oscar

Laminations wrote: »

Did you actually read that article? It's sensationalist in trying to make a story out of 'we have a time window to implement Croke Park, let's do it'. The CP agreement protects pay conditional on reform happening

Of course I read the article. Lets get realistic here - the fact of the matter is that only two days ago the Department of Finance released revised figures that show that instead of needing savings of €3.6 Billion in the upcoming budget there will now need to be savings of €5 Billion. The Croke Park Agreement is based upon economic figures which were estimated in 2010 - since that time the DoF has continually revised downwards its economic figures. The Croke Park Agreement can no longer deliver the desired savings and that is that.

Enda Kenny should stop pussy-footing around the issue. During the GE election campaign we were told that Enda Kenny would be a decisive leader. To me this just reeks of the same old same old "Ah sure we promise we wont cut this . . . but da ECB / IMF might make us down the line!!".

We need decisive leadership. There is absolutely no benefit in giving people a sense of false hope. Enda Kenny should tell it as it is. Cuts across the board will be inevitable with a €5 Billion budget in December and that is that.

Laminations

Sierra Oscar wrote: »

Of course I read the article.

So did the Taoiseach 'vow' anything 'at all costs'? If not, change the thread title.

It's quite simple, if you say there'll be pay cuts you lose the savings on the CPA (which you are probably right in saying won't be enough).

But if you make the savings in the CPA you don't necessarily lose pays cuts - if they are still needed after all other avenues are explored they'll happen.

ilovesleep

If they are going to cut another 5 billion in the budget this year would they not be better off cutting the deficit all in one go. Be done with it and no need to borrow to cover the shortfall.

gandalf

Looks like a massaged story by the Sindo, not the first time they have done this sort of thing and definitely won't be the last given their lax journalistic standards.

I would think that the gist of the the story behind this is the Government positioning things so the pressure is on the unions and the PS workers to deliver the targets as per the Croke Park agreement so when they do fail (which I believe they will) the government can take whatever action they deem necessary no matter how unpalatable it is.

nuac

This is only a usual sensational Sindo story.

Has it appeared in a real newspaper?

MaximusDecemus

All newspapers, and all news media for that matter, are sensationalist. The Independent is no worse than the Irish Times for taking a story and being creative with it so as to make it 'fit' with the expectations and politics of their readers.

Regarding Enda, I think he is doing what he has always done: style over substance politics. Too bad, because this country really needs a statesman to fix things and, funnily enough, I think Labour have talked the talk better than Fine Gael over the past few weeks with Howlin, Rabbitte and Burton.

Darlings

It’s a headline written to sell newspapers, that’s all. Public servants will see the head line and buy the paper happy that there maybe no more cuts and the general public will see the headline and buy the paper angry that the public service wages may not be cut. It will sell papers like it’s designed to do.

I think the general public think that if the Government keep cutting public servants wages that they will be spared more tax cuts and property buts etc.

Forget it; you can’t take a pair of knickers off a bare arse….

Maybe higher public servants, 100,000 plus INO

sollar

nuac wrote: »

This is only a usual sensational Sindo story.

Has it appeared in a real newspaper?

I'm amazed that any public servants are still buying that paper. They have been attacking public servants relentlessly for about 2 years now.

I stopped buying it a while ago and my sundays are so much more enjoyable since

gandalf

Similar story in the Irish Times today but look at the difference in presentation.

.....THE INTRODUCTION of greater flexibility within and between Government departments and an end to demarcations are necessary to avoid public sector pay cuts, Minister for Communications Pat Rabbitte has warned.

Full article here.

Again as I said earlier what the Government are doing is letting the unions and management know that if they do not achieve the targets in the CPA then there will be more pain in the form of pay cuts as dictated by the ECB/IMF who are keeping this country afloat at the moment.

It is logical and it is how things are. We have been pushed into this corner by the inability of the last two governments to lead us and to plan and implement policy to ensure the country and its services were prepared for the inevitable downturn.

Permabear

This post has been deleted.

Pete_Cavan

Sierra Oscar wrote: »

Enda vows no public pay cuts 'at all costs'

The actual quote from the article is;

"How could we expect to get reform if we are threatening more cuts? We are trying to avoid that scenario at all costs," one senior government source said last night.

Big difference between what was said and what the headline implies, and it wasnt even said by Enda! Just more sh*t sturring from the Indo.

Laminations

Pete_Cavan wrote: »

Big difference between what was said and what the headline implies, and it wasnt even said by Enda! Just more sh*t sturring from the Indo.

I've asked the OP to change the thread title, that hasn't happened as I'm sure the new title wouldn't garner any attention.

PeterIanStaker

I can't believe the Sindo had a misleading, sensationalised lead article. Whatever next?