IFUT is holding online information sessions for members and colleagues across higher education in advance of the upcoming ballot for industrial action arising from the absence of a new Public Service Agreement.
The Public Service Agreement expired on 30 June 2026. There is currently no agreed pay settlement for the second half of 2026 or for 2027, and key commitments from the previous agreement remain outstanding.
That cannot be allowed to become the new normal.
Higher education staff have continued to deliver teaching, research, administration, student support and public service. In return, Government has failed to put a credible pay agreement in place and has not yet produced a serious basis for negotiations.
IFUT is balloting members to secure a strong mandate for a fair settlement.
The ballot will ask eligible IFUT members to authorise industrial action, up to and including strike action, if necessary, to secure:
• an acceptable pay settlement for the remainder of 2026;
• appropriate pay increases under a successor agreement;
• implementation of outstanding Local Bargaining commitments; and
• protection against unilateral changes to work practices, the organisation of work or terms and conditions.
A YES vote does not automatically mean industrial action will take place. It gives IFUT the mandate needed to negotiate seriously and to act if necessary.
A strong mandate is not an obstacle to negotiation. It is what makes meaningful negotiation possible.
Attend an information session
These sessions will explain why the ballot is taking place, what members are being asked to vote on, what industrial action could involve, and how members and colleagues can support the campaign in their own workplace.
Please register for the session arranged for your institution.
Trinity College Dublin
https://members.ifut.ie/Event-Registration/EventId/23
University College Dublin
https://members.ifut.ie/Event-Registration/EventId/24
University College Cork
https://members.ifut.ie/Event-Registration/EventId/25
Maynooth University
https://members.ifut.ie/Event-Registration/EventId/26
Mary Immaculate College
https://members.ifut.ie/Event-Registration/EventId/27
Dublin City University
https://members.ifut.ie/Event-Registration/EventId/27
University of Galway
https://members.ifut.ie/Event-Registration/EventId/27
Educational Research Centre
https://members.ifut.ie/Event-Registration/EventId/27
Royal Irish Academy
https://members.ifut.ie/Event-Registration/EventId/27
Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies
https://members.ifut.ie/Event-Registration/EventId/27
Not yet a member of IFUT?
Only IFUT members are eligible to vote in the ballot.
If you are eligible for IFUT membership, you should join now so that you can have your say and strengthen the collective position of higher education staff.
You can join IFUT here:
https://members.ifut.ie/Membership-Application
Eligible colleagues who join IFUT by 5:00pm on 31 August 2026 will be eligible to vote in the ballot.
What you can do now
Register for an information session.
Make sure your IFUT details are up to date:
https://members.ifut.ie/Update-Details
Talk to colleagues about what is at stake.
Ask non-members to join IFUT before the ballot opens.
This ballot will be won workplace by workplace, conversation by conversation and member by member.
Every member matters. Every vote strengthens IFUT’s voice at the negotiating table.