“The Croke Park Agreement is working and is delivering a leaner public service without industrial unrest, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) was told today …” (more)
[Ronan McGreevy, Irish Times, 22 March]
“Trade unions have told the Oireachtas Finance Committee that the Croke Park Agreement has delivered savings of over €680m in the year to June 2011. IMPACT general secretary Shay Cody said the savings came from payroll and efficiencies, as well as what he called ‘cost avoidance initiatives’ – and claimed they had exceeded Government and troika targets …” (more)
[RTÉ News, 21 March]
“Deputy Dominic Hannigan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his plans for promotions in the public sector within the framework of the Croke Park agreement and his reform agenda; and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)
[Dáil Éireann, 13 March]
“Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (Deputy Brendan Howlin): The size of the public service grew significantly in the early years of the last decade. By 2008, some 320,000 were employed in the public service and, by 2009, the gross Exchequer pay bill peaked at more than €17.5bn. It is perhaps easy to become jaded in our discussion of public service pay costs. However, I would ask the House to note that the total net cost of the public service pay bill will be reduced from 2008 to 2015 by some €3.5bn – by 20% in seven years …” (more)
[Dáil Éireann, 8 March]
“Up to 3,000 staff will be recruited into the public sector where necessary to maintain services, mainly in health and education, public expenditure minister Brendan Howlin has told the Dáil …” (more)
[Fearghal O'Connor, Business Post, 8 March]
“Almost 4,000 jobs across the public service were sanctioned by governments in the last three years, according to new figures. At a time when the Government is trying to cut public sector numbers, approval was granted for 1,927 civil service posts since 2009 and around 1,825 posts in public bodies …” (more)
[Maeve Sheehan, Independent, 4 March]
“Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the Implementation Body will review high pay in the public sector during its annual review consultations this year. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the Implementation Body give priority to public servants with €35,000 or less in its annual review …” (more)
[Dáil Éireann, 28 February]
“Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he is satisfied that lecturers at third level are participating in adequate class contact, lectures and tutorials, in view of recent commentary attributed to him; if there is a general system of monitoring teaching hours in third level colleges; if there are specific requirements in respect of such hours for individual staff; if such requirements vary depending on the seniority of the staff; and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)
[Dáil Éireann Written Answers, 23 February]
“At its meeting today, the Standing Committee of the ASTI adopted a motion stating that in the event that the Government breaches the Public Service (Croke Park) Agreement by cutting teachers’ pay, the ASTI’s executive council will meet to decide on conducting a ballot on withdrawal from the Agreement …” (more)
[ASTI, 23 February]
“Somewhere in the Ministry of Magic or Death Star One, or wherever they Make The Decisions, someone is having a great laugh at our expense. According to the terms of the Croke Park Agreement, lecturers are required to meet with their students and that meeting slot must be a timetabled hour …” (more)
[Michael Seery, Is this going to be on the exam?, 21 February]
“The Croke Park dance involving the government, public sector management and public sector unions continues apace. It’s a dance on so many levels. The unions are playing a very cute game. All the dancers are …” (more)
[The Cedar Lounge Revolution, 21 February]
“One of the ministers charged with overseeing the reform of the public service has warned of a ‘nuclear winter’ of industrial action if the Croke Park deal is abandoned …” (more)
[Stephen Rogers, Irish Examiner, 18 February]
“The chief civil servant in Brendan Howlin’s Public Expenditure and Reform department is under fire for trying to stall a probe on the Croke Park deal …” (more)
[Anne-Marie Walsh, Independent, 18 February]
“Any cut to teacher allowances would be a breach of the Croke Park agreement and would result in the end of reforms under the deal, a union has warned …” (more)
[Niall Murray, Irish Examiner, 13 February]
“At its meeting on Friday 10th February 2012 the Executive Committee of the Teachers’ Union of Ireland considered the possible serious implications of the review of allowances being undertaken by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform …” (more)
[Teachers’ Union of Ireland, 11 February]
“The Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI) has decided to ballot members on withdrawal from the Croke Park agreement. This follows confirmation by the Government to public service unions that allowances to all existing public servants are to be reduced …” (more)
[Irish Times, 11 February]
“Minister of State at the Department of Finance (Deputy Brian Hayes): I thank the House for the opportunity to speak on this important matter. I am aware that a number of Senators have been seeking a debate of this nature for some time …” (more)
[Seanad Éireann, 9 February]
“The Teachers Union of Ireland is to ballot its members on withdrawing from the Croke Park Agreement. The TUI said that it made the decision following confirmation by government that allowances payable to all existing public servants are to be reduced …” (more)
[RTÉ News, 11 February]
“Croke Park deal cuts deep: The full cost of the Croke Park deal is being felt across the education sector. The pay of young teachers is being cut, small rural schools are threatened with closure and disadvantaged schools are braced for more cuts …” (more)
[Irish Times, 7 February]
“The Taoiseach has issued a stark warning to public servants that the protection of wages under the Croke Park Agreement may be revisited if work practices are not changed …” (more)
[Mary Regan, Irish Examiner, 6 February]
