THE SOCIETY of St Vincent de Paul has expressed concern that the social commitments contained in the deal struck by the social partners this week are being overshadowed by its pay provisions.
The group has recently reported a rise of almost 40 per cent in calls for help to its Dublin office, mostly due to increases in the costs of energy, fuel and food.
"We fully recognise the importance of this [pay] aspect of social partnership but social partnership is about much more than pay and conditions," said Prof John Monaghan, the society's vice-president.
He said the society had signed up to the previous agreement, Towards 2016, because the Government recognised the complementary relationship between social policy and economic prosperity, and the deal committed all parties to that relationship.
"What we're seeing now are the same old responses to economic challenges, with those who barely survived in Celtic Tiger times being hit very hard again. The social commitments in Towards 2016 are suddenly pushed back with the mantra 'economic circumstances permitting'."
