Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

People are shocked at the extent of the pay and pay increases for the Secretary General of the Department of Health and the pay level for the head of the HSE. How can the Government justify that when at the same time it is willing to stand over the fact that ordinary workers in the health service, in education and in local authorities are held down to 1% or 2% pay increases when inflation is running at 5%? Following a briefing at the Department of Finance today, the breaking news is that the Department is estimating that as a result of the situation in Ukraine and the decision to impose sanctions, we are looking at 7% inflation for the coming year. Working people are being hammered with the rising cost of living, which will go up further, yet the Government will keep their pay increases at 1% or 2%. Would workers not be right to put in pay claims to insist they get pay increases at least to the level of the cost of living and inflation increases that are being inflicted on them?

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