Could public sector strikes over coming pay cuts bring down the government?

[patslatt]

The government will be forced to cut government employees' pay in the next budget,likely leading to industrial actions by the civil service.

Could those actions bring down the government? For example, a national strike in hospitals or a brief "blue flu" strike that prompted widespread looting would be difficult to deal with given the pandering to public sector unions under Social Partnership.

The government will need a clear strategy for this. Let's hope we are not reduced to emulating the Roman Emperor's command,"Pay the army and to Hell with the rest!" To which I would add,pay the Garda riot squad.

[hiding behind a poster]

The government will be forced to cut government employees' pay in the next budget,likely leading to industrial actions by the civil service.

Could those actions bring down the government down? For example, a national strike in hospitals or a brief "blue flu" strike that prompted widespread looting would be difficult to deal with given the pandering to public sector unions under Social Partnership.

The government will need a clear strategy for this.

Wrong. The government will need to cut the public sector pay bill - but that does not necessarily mean cutting public sector pay. And you know that full well. At that point your argument more or less falls apart.

[stewiegriffin]

They are going to be here till Lisbon2 anyway . My hope is that hostility towards the government will manifest itself in a 'no' victory . So what if Libertas and some spineless types defect? Theres no shortage of anger at the government and there is only one meaningful vent.Add in FFs potential for gaffs and I think a 'no' outcome would be worth a bet with paddy power.

[Furze]

Lisbon II will be "passed" even if over 50% of the electorate vote against.
Do not think for a minute you live in a democracy. The big man Cowen is spinning hype for home consumption with his strong line on protocols. We are to be subsumed into a super state to become the West Virginia of Europe.

[hopi watcher]

The government will be forced to cut government employees' pay in the next budget,likely leading to industrial actions by the civil service.

Could those actions bring down the government down? For example, a national strike in hospitals or a brief "blue flu" strike that prompted widespread looting would be difficult to deal with given the pandering to public sector unions under Social Partnership.

The government will need a clear strategy for this.

Do you think of nothing other than cutting people's income? The government may want to but to do so without agreement and clear good grounds would most certainly lead to massive walkouts and would therefore be counter-productive. What you seem to constantly forget is that it is the people who are sovereign, not the government.

[Cato]

Lisbon II will be "passed" even if over 50% of the electorate vote against.
Do not think for a minute you live in a democracy. The big man Cowen is spinning hype for home consumption with his strong line on protocols. We are to be subsumed into a super state to become the West Virginia of Europe.

Damn it! I was hoping for Illinois.

[Furze]

The government will be forced to cut government employees' pay in the next budget,likely leading to industrial actions by the civil service.

Could those actions bring down the government down? For example, a national strike in hospitals or a brief "blue flu" strike that prompted widespread looting would be difficult to deal with given the pandering to public sector unions under Social Partnership.

The government will need a clear strategy for this.

Well, if the theft from the people of Ireland under the guise of bank bail-outs has not caused civil unrest then I doubt a 50% pay cut against any group will raise much sweat in the Dail.
The Judiciary are exempt from these cuts and the legal difficulties that no doubt will manifest against the cuts in other groups pay will play out.

[Proposition Joe]

Do you think of nothing other than cutting people's income?

Said she who enjoys nowt more than dreaming up ways of taxing other people's income.

The government may want to but to do so without agreement and clear good grounds would most certainly lead to massive walkouts and would therefore be counter-productive. What you seem to constantly forget is that it is the people who are sovereign, not the government.

Yes the people are indeed sovereign, but you conflate the "people" with the public serivce employees. It is not in most of the people's interest to continue over-paying the PS.

Some combination of tax rises, social welfare cuts and PS payroll reduction must be found. Note the gardient in terms of numbers across that list. There are substantially most private sector tax-payers than social welfare dependents, who in turn out-number PS employees.

However the gradient in terms of leverage that can be applied to the government probably runs in the opposite direction: the PS can strike, the SW class have capable advocates on their side, while the private sector tax-payer is a largely silent majority.

All three groups will lose out in the next budget, this is unavoidable. The question is how the pain will be apportioned. But it is ludicrous, given the massive hole in the budget, to argue that any one huge chunk of government spending is sacrosanct and cannot be cut.

[bobbysands81]

The government will be forced to cut government employees' pay in the next budget,likely leading to industrial actions by the civil service.

Could those actions bring down the government down? For example, a national strike in hospitals or a brief "blue flu" strike that prompted widespread looting would be difficult to deal with given the pandering to public sector unions under Social Partnership.

The government will need a clear strategy for this.

You keep posting on the same topic time and time again yet you have no clue what the difference is between the Public and the Civil Service.

You have no credibility at all when it comes to this topic.

when you say that the Govt have "pandered" to Social Partnership can you actually explain what you mean?

Don't you know that it is illegal to cut wages without employees agreement? What about that do you not understand??? Our terms and conditions of employment are set out in a contract we have with our employers, this cannot be changed without our agreement.

Cutting our wages would be illegal, the Govt wouldn't have a leg to stand on. If the Govt went down this road the State would stop functioning immediately and the Govt would fall... that's not a threat, that's a fact.

[121.5]

You keep posting on the same topic time and time again yet you have no clue what the difference is between the Public and the Civil Service

there is none, they both suck on the tit of the tax payer yet NEVER provide world class services.