Social Affairs

Senior civil servants vote to accept public sector pay agreement

Higher public service staff call for faster pay restoration

Association of Higher Civil and Public Servants general secretary Ciaran Rohan
Association of Higher Civil and Public Servants general secretary Ciaran Rohan
Aine McMahon
Fri Jul 07 2017 - 18:49

Management grades in the Civil Service have voted to accept the public service stability agreement.

Members of the Association of Higher Civil and Public Servants (AHCPS) have voted to accept the agreement by a majority of 82 per cent.

The AHCPS represents mainly staff at assistant principal and principal officer level in the Civil Service.

The union is the first to conclude their vote on the measures set out in the public sector pay agreement.

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The union is seeking an acceleration in the pace of restoration of pay cuts which were imposed on its 3,000 members over recent years. It also wants to see the existing link between the pay of principal officers in the Civil Service and TDs scrapped, as it believes it disadvantages its members.

Members delivered the clear majority verdict without a recommendation from the Executive to accept or reject the deal.

General Secretary of the AHCPS, Ciaran Rohan said while they were disappointed their members will water another five years to see pay levels restored, they welcome the progress made in recent weeks.

"We will continue in the months and years ahead to work with our members to deliver the full restoration of their pay. If we want to attract and retain experienced and skilled managers into the civil and public sector, we need to ensure that they are remunerated appropriately and in line with what's available in the private sector. In this regard the Association looks forward to engaging with the Public Service Pay Commission to address the problem of the level of remuneration at senior levels in the Civil and Public Service."

Management grades in the Civil Service are are receiving up to 60 per cent less than the total pay available to their equivalent counterparts in the private sector, according to a recent study commissioned by the AHCPS.

It found that the salary of an assistant principal officer was 30 per cent less and the pay of a principal officer was 60 per cent less than the total remuneration (including bonuses) available to senior managers in equivalent roles in the private sector.