Hundreds of care workers have been excluded from the pay deal agreed this week for the community and voluntary sector.
The employees, many of whom work for home care providers, will not benefit from the pay increases because the organisations they work for were deemed to be “out of scope” due to the way they are funded.
“Funding for services commissioned through tendering arrangements are not covered in this agreement as these are separately contracted with relevant providers,” a HSE spokesperson said.
“Related considerations can be dealt with through existing procurement processes.”
The HSE said: “The current tendering arrangement for home support services is due for renewal in August 2025 and organisations will be given an opportunity to input into a rate review.”
In an update to members who are not covered by the pay deal, SIPTU said its representatives have expressed their anger and disappointment to Government officials.
“SIPTU firmly rejects the Government’s approach, which is seen as an attempt at divide and rule,” the update stated.
“We have stated that it is not acceptable that members who provide important roles in home support and other services are now deemed outside the terms of the proposals and without a mechanism to address their outstanding pay claim,” SIPTU said.
The union added that it will continue to pursue the workers’ pay claims outside of the current pay deal and that it will consider all available options to achieve a fair outcome for members.
The pay proposals for the community and voluntary sector were agreed at the Workplace Relations Commission on Monday following talks between Government representatives and unions.
The deal includes a 9.25% pay increase for up to 40,000 workers backdated to October 2024 with phased increases in 2025 and 2026.
The workers will also have an automatic link to all future public sector pay agreements.
The Fórsa trade union said yesterday that is to recommend acceptance of a pay deal.
Other unions are continuing to consult with members on the matter.
The Government said the proposals deliver on a Programme for Government commitment with an additional investment of around €140m per year.
The agreement applies to workers in organisations grant funded under Section 39 which relates to healthcare, Section 56 which relates to child and family services, Section 10 which relates to housing, and Section 40 which relates to domestic, sexual and gender-based violence agencies.
The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth said some organisations are directly contracted to perform tasks, such as home care and home help after carrying out public tendering.
“These contracts are awarded through competitive processes,” a spokesperson said.
“They are not covered by the WRC agreement as this is a matter for the next round of tendering. Any changes to existing contracts could breach competition and public procurement rules,” they added.
