RALLIES WILL BE held in eight locations across Ireland next Thursday as public sector workers prepare for a second nationwide strike over pay.

Demonstrations are planned in Dublin, Cork city, Limerick city, Galway city, Waterford city, Sligo town, Letterkenny and Tullamore on 12 November.

All rallies are due to take place between midday and 2pm, with routes and other arrangements still being finalised.

According to public service union Fórsa, while there may be some select pickets at certain public sector locations, the emphasis will be on demonstrations rather than widespread picketing.

The rallies form part of a planned 24-hour stoppage involving public and civil service workers.

The action is being coordinated across 19 unions, with more than 300,000 workers involved in the wider dispute. 

It will coincide with the European Political Community summit in Dublin, a flagship event during Ireland’s EU presidency that will bring around 50 European leaders to the capital.

Strike action could affect the civil service work supporting the event, alongside disruption to schools, healthcare and other public services.

The previous public sector pay agreement expired on 30 June. Unions say workers’ wages have fallen behind living costs and want a successor agreement that addresses that gap and protects earnings against further inflation.

More than 300,000 public sector workers took part in a nationwide strike on 14 October. A further stoppage planned for 21 October was suspended to allow negotiations to happen.

However, intensive talks at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) ended without agreement last Friday, with the commission subsequently saying certain issues had reached an impasse.

The rejected government proposal provided for general pay increases totalling 6.75%, alongside a further 1% for local bargaining, bringing the headline package to 7.75% over two and a half years.

Fórsa said this comprised an initial 1.75% increase followed by five increases of 1% between November 2026 and October 2028.

The separate local bargaining allocation, due in 2028, would address pay claims affecting particular roles and grades.

Unions argued the offer would not adequately protect workers against inflation. They also raised concerns about the local bargaining allocation and the absence of guaranteed minimum increases to give greater support to lower-paid staff.

An independent group chaired by WRC chair Kevin Foley has since held separate discussions with government representatives and unions in an effort to resolve the dispute.