Outsourcing has become an issue in public sector pay negotiations

Outsourcing has become an issue in public sector pay negotiations. “Civil Public and Services Union general secretary Eoin Ronayne told his members in a posting on its website that the wish list tabled by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform contains items rejected by the unions during the Haddington Road and Lansdowne Road Agreement talks. (…) In discussions regarding outsourcing yesterday, sources said the Government appears to be seeking to weaken the controls which exist on how services can be given over to the private sector. At present, a business case must be presented as to why the service should be outsourced, and that business case is not allowed to include labour costs. It is feared that if labour costs were to be included, the private sector could offer the service at the lowest possible wage and most basic conditions — it would leave little chance that the public service could compete.”