More than 300,000 workers held a one-day work stoppage on Wednesday, seeking a new public sector deal, with trade unions arguing pay terms must be agreed before other issues are addressed. Here, some of them share their stories.
The teacher
Teachers do not want to be on strike today and are anxious to see negotiations on a new pay deal begin, secondary schoolteacher Anthony Keane said.
Keane is an English teacher and counsellor at Hartstown Community School in Dublin 15.
“I don’t want to be on strike. I don’t know anyone who wants to be on strike today, and it’s unfortunate that it has come to this,” he said on the picket line.
“I think it’s unfortunate that we’re outside the school building rather than inside where we want to be today – inside it. I just hope it’s encouragement for the Government to engage in meaningful dialogue.”
The cost of accommodation has put huge pressure on teachers in his school, particularly younger staff, and people are “really feeling the pinch on multiple levels”, he said.
Many of the staff at Hartstown are commuting very long distances, some from Kilkenny, Cavan, Westmeath and Offaly, Keane said.
Part of his reason for being on strike is to show solidarity with younger staff members who are “really struggling” on the wages they receive.
“Let’s appreciate what makes life better for people in this country, and they are the basic services, so that people can live and be educated and have basic needs looked after,” he said.
He urged those on both sides to sit down and find a resolution through dialogue, sooner rather than later.
“It’s unfortunate that taxpayers are being affected today. That taxpayers are on strike today. That people who are providing public services have to be on strike outside their places of work, rather than inside doing what they want to do.” Niamh Towey
The healthcare assistant
Martina Burke, a healthcare assistant in the emergency department at University Hospital Galway, has a 40-kilometre commute to work from her home in Co Mayo.
A mother of adult children, like hundreds of workers on the picket line at UHG she is feeling the pinch of higher fuel prices and the cost-of-living crisis.
“I work three long days. I’m up at 5.30am, not home until 9.15pm. It’s a long day. It’s busy and it’s hard work. But the work isn’t the problem, it’s the pay. We want fair pay,” she said.
A representative with trade union Siptu for 20 years, this is Burke’s second strike, and she feels the public is backing the industrial action.
“People who filter through the hospital see the hard work we do. The public are very supportive of us,” she said.
“Our message to the Government is: sit down, talk and listen to the unions. We don’t want to be here today, no one does.
“We had a 95 per cent vote to strike, which was overwhelming – it means everyone wants the same thing. If they don’t sit down with us, we will 100 per cent be back here again next week.” Dara Bradley
The civilian member of An Garda Síochána
Josh Graves (31), from north Dublin, was one of the more than 150 civilian members of An Garda Síochána on strike outside Garda Headquarters in the Phoenix Park on Wednesday.
Graves and his partner both work in the Civil Service, and he feels striking is the only way to get his point across.
“We’ve just had enough, to be honest. We’re both in our early 30s and we are struggling through life. We can’t afford a house, and can barely afford to put the petrol in the car at this stage, never mind groceries and bills.”
We just want to afford a house, get married and have children. But at the moment, none of those are feasible for us
He said people who work on the ground and keep the country running deserve better.
“This is our last option. None of us want to be here. I’d much rather be in work today. We’re not getting paid for today.
“We don’t want to cause the disruption to the rest of the community, but, unfortunately, we’ve got to the stage where we feel this is the only way we can get our point across.”
Graves said staff just want their pay to “meet the requirements of the cost of living and inflation”.
“We just want to afford a house, get married and have children. But at the moment, none of those are feasible for us.” Hugh Dooley
The midwife
Paula Morrin is a midwife manager at the Rotunda Hospital in Dublin who believes the cost-of-living crisis is having a significant impact on the health and safety of staff.
“The budget came and went and there was no reduction in the cost of fuel. We have members here who are travelling from Monaghan, Kerry, Wicklow, Wexford. I’m lucky, I live on the south side of Dublin, but it takes me two hours to get here. That’s a lot of petrol,” she said.
“The prices have affected all of us. We have members who have fallen asleep behind the wheel of a car and died on the roads in the last couple of years. We have members who have lived in their cars. People are impacted and our salaries haven’t risen in line with inflation.”
Morrin said she adores her job, wants to be in the hospital caring for her patients, and that staff “work tirelessly”.
“We have a loyalty to our patients, we care for them, but we also have to care for our families and care for ourselves. We’re all affected as individuals. And there’s been so many broken promises. It’s enough.” Shauna Bowers
The civil servant
Mark Prouse, head groundsman at the Iveagh Gardens in Dublin, described the provision of €1.2 billion for public sector pay in the budget as “an insult”.
“Micheál Martin comes along and brags about this €1.2 billion that he’s giving us over the next three years. When you break it down, it’s actually only €3.50, €3.40 a day or something.
“It’s crazy. You couldn’t get a cup of coffee with what he’s offering us, so it’s not a genuine offer. He thinks we’re all stupid when we’re not.”
[ Public opinion may shift if the second strike goes aheadOpens in new window ]
Prouse, who is also a Siptu shop steward, said the strike could have been averted if the Government engaged in negotiations with trade unions months ago.
“My gas bill has doubled, my electricity bill has doubled, my diesel has doubled. I mean, what do they expect us to live on? Nobody can survive on the wages we’re getting.”
Prouse thinks the dispute can be resolved in the coming days to avoid another 24-hour strike next Wednesday if the Government “stop insulting us”. Órla Ryan
The porter
Wednesday’s strike is all about wages and the increased cost of getting by, said Conor Carroll, a porter at St Michael’s Hospital in Dún Laoghaire.
He switched from bar work eight years ago to able to spend more time with his children.
“We’re just out looking for fair play,” he said, picketing at the hospital gates on the town’s main street.
“It’s just about the cost of living. Every time you go to the supermarket you feel it,” he said, gesturing towards the Tesco shopping centre across the road.
“Everything’s gone up – even the cost of eating – and whatever you’re earning doesn’t feel like enough these days.”
The hospital, he said, is a good place to work, categorising it as a community operation where “everyone gets on”.
He commutes from Lucan and tries to work shifts that allow him do a school run.
“Management are good, they are always helpful with rosters when you need it,” he said. “I have no complaints, really, except that my pay hasn’t gone up and everything else has.” Emmet Malone