THE TRADE UNION representing the lower-paid civil servants has voted not to support any reforms introduced under the terms of the Croke Park Agreement, at its annual conference.

Meeting in Athlone, members of the Civil Public Services Union voted effectively to block any reforms introduced under the agreement, having last year voted to reject the terms of the deal itself.

The Irish Times reports how the CPSU conference had been told the union had previously adopted a position of “constructive ambiguity” on the agreement so far, considering individual reforms on a case-by-case basis.

But the union’s general secretary, Blair Horan, said the CPSU would now have to set out a concrete stance on the deal, saying it was “not going to be able to continue with a policy of having it both ways.”

The vote came after members had experienced significant drops in their level of take-home pay experienced by its members in 2010.

RTÉ News adds that delegates also voted to back any industrial action if the government attempts to introduce any further pay cuts in the sector.