Government and public service unions have reached a draft agreement to succeed the Lansdowne Road Agreement.

Over 300,000 public sector workers look set to benefit from a new draft agreement reached by the Government and public service unions that will come into effect from next year onwards. According to RTÉ, 250,000 people recruited before 2013 stand to benefit from pay improvements ranging from 6.2% to 7.4% over the next three years. A further 50,000 or so public sector workers recruited after 2013 with inferior pension arrangements, meanwhile, will see improvements ranging from 7% to 10%. The proposals come at a cost of €880 million over three years or €1.1 billion over four years. Public sector workers stand to benefit both from phased pay increases that will come into effect from January 1, 2018 and from a three tier approach to funding pensions based on an individual’s level of benefits. A summary of the main points of the negotiations can be read below and in more detail on the website of the Public Service Executive Union here; a more detailed summary (and a full text of the finalised proposals) will be available on the website in due course. The final decision on whether the proposals are agreed will be determined by ballots of members of the unions concerned.

• Duration of proposal: 1st January 2018 to 31st December 2020
• By 2020, more than 90% of public servants will be out of FEMPI pay provisions, and almost a quarter will have exited FEMPI pension levy payments
• 73% of public servants gain more than 7% by 2020.

Pay and pension levy

• 1st January 2018: 1% pay adjustment
• 1st October 2018: 1% pay adjustment
• 1st January 2019: Pension levy threshold up from €28,750 to €32,000 (worth €325pa)
• 1st January 2019: 1% pay adjustment for those earning less than €30,000
• 1st September 2019: 1.75% pay adjustment
• 1st January 2020: Pension levy threshold increased to €34,500 (worth €250pa)
• 1st October 2020: 2% pay adjustment.

Value of combined pay and pension levy adjustments

• Combination of pay and pension levy adjustments worth 7.4% to those earning €30,000 a year or less, over lifetime of deal
• Combination of pay and pension levy adjustments worth 7% to those earning between €50,000 and €55,000 a year, over lifetime of deal
• Combination of pay and pension levy adjustments worth between 6.6% and 6.9% for those between €55,000 and €80,000 a year, over lifetime of deal.