FOREIGN AFFAIRS MINISTER Helen McEntee has urged against any public sector strikes, claiming that the industrial actions “won’t benefit anybody”.

Unions are pressuring the government to enter into a new public sector pay deal, with more than 100,000 public sector workers taking work-to-rule action as of this week.

Members of the Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO) and the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) will commence a work to rule on Monday.

McEntee said on Sunday that unions needed to come to the table “without any preconditions”, as she warned of the impact that industrial action could have.

“My ambition here, and I think of everybody in Government, is that these talks can happen as quickly as possible,” McEntee told This Week on RTÉ Radio One.

“They need to, because we don’t want to see this impacting people, in particular school going students as well.”

The Fine Gael minister added that the public expenditure minister Jack Chambers has been “very clear that there are no preconditions when we engage in these talks, but also, that we do not want these strikes to go ahead, because they won’t benefit anybody”.

McEntee said that money is “very clearly being reserved” for public sector pay, but that for any negotiation, “you don’t come in with any set figure or set proposal.”

“I do not want to see strikes happening. The Minister of Public Expenditure does not want to see strikes happening, and I think the vast majority of people in this country do not want to see us get to that point,” McEntee said.

“But, we have to ensure that if talks are to progress, that it is without any preconditions, and that is my understanding as to what is being presented by Minister Chambers, and I know that he’s eager and keen to engage with people.”

Public Service Union Fórsa, which represents workers across health, education and the civil service, has said members will work strictly to contract and refuse to undertake additional duties.

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) has said that workers would only provide duties necessary for “safe patient care” during rostered hours. 

INMO members will not work any additional unpaid hours or attend non-clinical meetings. 

Trade union Siptu members in health and local authorities are also engaging in work-to-rule today.