Government's Revised Public-Sector Offer: 10.5% Through Early 2029

By Amara Osei

A revised Government offer would deliver a 10.5% pay increase for public-sector workers through early 2029, Tipp Mid West Radio reported. The package would produce an 11% compounded uplift and would raise pay for lower-paid staff by as much as 17.8%, according to the report.

Talks between the Government and public-sector unions continue today, Tipp Mid West Radio said. Unions representing more than 300,000 public-sector staff previously rejected the Government's 7.75% offer over two-and-a-half years, according to the report.

The unions plan a 24-hour strike for Thursday. Tipp Mid West Radio described the planned action as “rallies instead of pickets outside workplaces.” Both sides aim to reach a multiyear pay deal and avoid the stoppage.

What does the revised offer change?

The revised package exceeds the 7.75% increase unions rejected, Tipp Mid West Radio reported. Its 10.5% headline gain is 2.75 percentage points higher before compounding over the proposed term. Tipp Mid West Radio also reported larger increases for lower-paid public servants, whose gains could reach 17.8%.

The agreement would run until early 2029 and equate to an 11% uplift when the increases compound across its duration, Tipp Mid West Radio reported. The compounded figure is 0.5 percentage point above the straight 10.5% cumulative increase because it accounts for each increase building on the previous one.

Tipp Mid West Radio said the offer was also understood to include a 2026 payment of €1,200 or 2%, whichever is higher. Together with the other increases, the payment would bring pay increases for this year to 4% for public-sector workers, according to the report. The formula would pay the 2% amount where it exceeds €1,200 and €1,200 otherwise.

Tipp Mid West Radio presented the 10.5%, 11% and 17.8% figures as parts of one revised package. The first two describe the overall increase on different compounding bases, while the third marks the largest increase for lower-paid public servants. On Tipp Mid West Radio's figures, that maximum sits 7.3 percentage points above the 10.5% headline increase, and the compounded 11% result adds 0.5 point to the same base. The near-term 4% increase applies within a proposal that reaches early 2029, according to the report.

Can talks avert Thursday's strike?

Tipp Mid West Radio listed rallies in eight cities. The planned locations are:

• Dublin
• Cork
• Limerick
• Galway
• Waterford
• Sligo
• Tullamore
• Letterkenny

The Dublin event would coincide with two major EU summit gatherings in the city, Tipp Mid West Radio reported. If the strike proceeds, it could disrupt schools, hospitals, council services and government services, according to the report.

What happens if talks fail?

Failure to agree a multiyear pay deal would leave the Thursday stoppage scheduled, based on the unions' current plan as described by Tipp Mid West Radio. The action covers a full 24-hour period and would rely on rallies at eight listed locations rather than pickets outside workplaces.

The stakes extend beyond the 10.5%, 11% and 17.8% pay benchmarks because Tipp Mid West Radio identified four service areas a stoppage could affect. Tipp Mid West Radio named schools, hospitals, council services and government services as potential areas of disruption.

For public-sector workers represented by the unions, acceptance would place the Government's proposed 10.5% increase, 11% compounded uplift and 17.8% lower-paid maximum into an agreement running to early 2029, according to Tipp Mid West Radio. Without acceptance, the proposed 4% increase for this year would remain unconfirmed and Thursday's action would remain scheduled.

Tipp Mid West Radio's reporting points to today's talks as the next concrete test. A deal would avert Thursday's 24-hour strike; failure would leave potential disruption across schools, hospitals, council services and government services.