Paudie Coffey (Fine Gael)

Is it true that many of the bonuses now being paid out are part of the social partnership agreements? Were they agreed in the benchmarking negotiations that took place many years ago in order that compensation was paid in the form of bonuses unaccompanied by productivity targets rather than adding to already generous salaries? Social partnership brought many benefits in terms of industrial peace but we are beginning to see the downside. Senator Prendergast referred to the junkets around the globe that civil servants and union officials enjoyed as part of social partnership. Departments and local authorities have incurred unnecessary expenditure on partnership facilitation offices and officials designated to keep the peace at a huge cost to the taxpayer. The biggest farce of all is the payment of bonuses.

Three years ago, I raised the issue of the bonuses being paid to county and city managers and directors of services. When I was a local authority member, I could not find out why these bonuses were being paid or the productivity targets required for them. The truth is now coming out that bonuses were paid across the Civil Service as part of the social partnership agreements. At a time when bonuses are being cut for the most vulnerable and those on the bread line and graduates are being asked to work for nothing in schools and offices around this country, we want truth and transparency.