GRA calls off planned Garda work-to-rule

The Garda Representative Association’s Central Executive Committee voted on November 9 to call off a five-day work-to-rule planned to begin November 10, after talks with Garda management over pay, overtime and other working conditions. The action had been scheduled to run through November 14, coinciding with major European leaders’ meetings in Dublin.

The GRA said it was satisfied with assurances and commitments reached in discussions involving its president, Niall Hodgins, and general secretary, Ronan Slevin, with Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly and Deputy Commissioner Paul Cleary. The association said the agreement covered pay, overtime and subsistence payments, as well as mileage in the Dublin Metropolitan Region and overtime for officers travelling more than 100 kilometres to work at the events.

The GRA had directed members to follow work-to-rule procedures after a member vote on October 27. The dispute centred on working-time arrangements, breaks between shifts and what the association described as overreliance on enforced overtime. Garda management had denied breaching agreements, according to reporting before the decision to withdraw the action.