February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
By Andrew Bushe
DUBLIN — A two-thirds majority of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions has endorsed the national partnership deal that will mean workers will be 25.75 percent better off over the next 33 months.
Delegates at a special conference voted in favor of the "Program for Prosperity and Fairness" by 251 to 112 on behalf of about 500,000 union members.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern welcomed what he described as a "decisive result." He said the vote was almost 70:30, compared to 60:40 when the last deal, Partnership 2000, was agreed.
"I think those who say social partnership is on the wane have been proved incorrect. This country has in social partnership a well-tested, winning and dynamic process," he said.
The employers’ organization, the Irish Business and Employers Confederation, voted unanimously to endorse the deal.
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National partnership income deals delivering pay increases, tax cuts and a range of social measures for the less well off, have been a central feature of economic policy since 1987 and have been credited with being a crucial factor in fueling the Celtic Tiger economy.
The new deal gives 15.75 percent in pay raises and 10 percent in tax cuts. It also involves a minimum wage of £4.40.