Public service unions call on Government to restore pay equality for new recruits
Unions are calling on the Government to waste no time restoring pay equality for new public service recruits.
According to a report from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform yesterday, it will cost €200m to get pay equalisation for the 60,000 public servants who have joined since 2011.
Cuts during the recession have meant they are earning less and are on lower terms and conditions than longer-serving colleagues.
Joanne Irwin, President of the Teachers Union of Ireland, says the disparity is having a negative impact on the education system.
She said: "Well it's having a serious effect on teachers, we have huge recruitment and retention issues now.
"There has been a 62% drop in the number of applicants who go on to teacher training. Those who are currently in who are recent entrants to teaching are leaving the profession and going abroad where they can get more lucrative contracts.
"So, we want to keep the teachers that we train in Ireland, and the only way to do it is to address the pay equality issue."
