Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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2108. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the details of the senior official from his Department who has been appointed to the working group established to review the State’s industrial relations position to facilitate recent Government decisions on the Garda associations. [37938/17]

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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The Department of Defence has been afforded observer status by the Department of Justice and Equality, to the Working Group on industrial relations structures for an Garda Síochána. The official nominated to liaise with counterparts in the Department of Justice and Equality is Mr. Stephen Hall, Principal Officer, Conciliation and Arbitration Branch.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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2110. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the reasons during the public sector pay talks when RACO tabled retention initiatives and invited defence sector management to do likewise the matter was diverted to the negotiating table of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37940/17]

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Following the publication of the Report of the Public Service Pay Commission on 9 May 2017, the Government initiated negotiations on an extension to the Lansdowne Road Agreement ahead of Budget 2018 considerations. The Permanent Defence Force Representative Associations attended the negotiations which were held under the auspices of the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC). The Official side at the talks included representatives from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform with officials from the Department of Defence and military management. The issues raised by the Permanent Defence Force Representative Associations were considered in tandem with those raised by other public sector representative associations and trade unions.

I subsequently met the Permanent Defence Force Representative Associations following the finalisation of the Workplace Climate in the Defence Forces focus group research and before its official publication. There will be further engagement between the Department of Defence, the Defence Forces and the Representative Associations on this matter.

It should be noted that the Department of Defence, in conjunction with the Defence Forces, raised recruitment and retention issues, as part of the submission to the Public Service Pay Commission. This is specifically referenced by the Commission in paragraph 6.13 of the Report.

Section 3 of the Public Service Stability Agreement 2018-2020 provides that the Public Service Pay Commission be requested to complete a comprehensive examination of underlying difficulties in recruitment and retention in those sectors and employment streams identified in the Report of the Public Sector Pay Commission. The parties to the Agreement will have the opportunity to make submissions to the Commission.