GARDAÍ HAVE VOTED overwhelming in favour of taking industrial action over pay.
The members of the Garda Representative Association (GRA) were balloted by the union on their preference for whether or not industrial action should be taken over their pay dispute with the Department of Justice.
The secret ballot involved the association’s 10,000 members.
The ballot result released today showed that 95.3% (6,069) of GRA members who voted are in favour of industrial action, while 4.7% (300) are against the idea.
There were 6,505 votes counted and 136 spoiled votes.
Ciaran O’Neill, President of the GRA, said:
We surveyed our members to find out if there is an appetite for industrial action. The reason for this is because our members have done everything that was asked of them, and the reluctance of the Government to reward our patience has driven us towards this move. It is not surprising to hear that our members are willing to take some form of industrial action to see their pay and conditions restored.
A draft agreement was concluded with the Department of Justice following negotiations. This was discussed by the Central Executive Committee yesterday. It was decided that our Special Delegate Conference tomorrow will discuss this draft agreement further and decide the best way to proceed.”
Because they rejected the Lansdowne Road agreement, gardaí are currently receiving no pay increments. This affects anyone with less than 17 years’ service in the force – 62% of rank-and-file gardaí.
“It is the association’s policy to reverse the pay cuts, protect pensions and ensure employment levels,” general secretary of the GRA Pat Ennis said in the association’s latest newsletter.
He told members in the same newsletter that the decision to take action is “your individual choice”.
The association has said that the solutions to its grievances are detailed in a 13-point discussion document which it submitted to he Department of Justice on 25 July.
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