Statement regarding offer to RACO for pay negotiations

Following on from the offer of conditional temporary consent to PDFORRA to seek associate membership with ICTU solely for the purpose of the forthcoming pay negotiations, the Minister for Defence is pleased to announce that an offer of temporary conditional consent has also been made to, and accepted, by RACO.

The goal of the Representative Associations of associate membership of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), had been stated to Minister Coveney by PDFORRA, but also by RACO, on a number of occasions.

The recent Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces also made recommendations in this regard. That Report, and the advices Minister Coveney received from the Office of the Attorney General, noted the complex nature of this matter. Both also note the requirement for a range of issues to be resolved through the introduction of primary legislation before this could be facilitated in the longer term by the government to ensure that ultimately, the State’s ability to control and direct its Armed Forces remains absolute, and that any eventual solution in this regard retains that certainty.

Minister Coveney commented:

"As I stated in the Dáil, I undertook to respond to the Representative Associations, which I have done. My officials, as well as officials from the Chief State Solicitors Office and Office of the Attorney General, have spent a considerable amount of time in finalising appropriate legal arrangements.

"As provided for in the Defence Acts, and following on from the consent provided to PDFORRA last week, my officials have this week conveyed an offer of temporary conditional consent to RACO, to seek temporary associate membership with ICTU solely for the purpose of the forthcoming pay negotiations.

"I am happy to announce that this offer of temporary conditional consent has also been accepted by RACO. I have now instructed my officials to commence the process of making the appropriate legislative amendments required."