Fianna Fáil General Election candidate for Mayo Lisa Chambers says her party will work to bring the take home pay of gardaí, teachers, and nurses in line with general wage improvements in the economy. Along with these measures, the party will address the inferior conditions of newly recruited public servants who secured jobs after 2011.
Cllr Chambers commented: “I want to see public sector pay rates reflect the improving wage conditions that are beginning to emerge in other industries. The public and private sectors need to move in line together rather than having one or other surging ahead or lagging behind. We need to ensure that there is equality across the system so that gardaí, nurses, and teachers are not at a major financial disadvantage compared with their peers.
“Fianna Fáil will ensure that newly recruited public servants are no longer discriminated against as a result of inferior terms and conditions. Anyone entering the public service after 2011 was taken on on vastly reduced pay scales, despite being expected to carry out the same duties. This issue was not addressed in the most recent public sector pay agreement, and we would like to see this aspect of the deal revisited to create a more level playing field for all workers.
"The new public sector pay deal, which is due for negotiation next year, must focus on low and middle income earners in the first instance. This could be achieved through a combination of flat rate pay increases along with a percentage increase as resources allow. Gardaí, nurses, and teachers play a vital role in our society, yet many of the newer entrants have been penalised by the two-tier pay structure brought in by this Government. I want to see that reversed and replaced with a fairer system that rewards people based on their work and is not defined by when they began their career."
