A union representing some 3,000 senior civil servants and managers has called for an early review of the Public Service Stability Agreement.
The Association of Higher Civil and Public Servants (AHCPS) called for "accelerated restoration of pay" for its members at its annual conference in Dublin on Friday.
The association - which represents members at Assistant Principal Officer (APO) or Principal Officer (PO) level in the civil and public sector - discussed some 31 motions.
In addition to the motion on pay, other motions tabled included a call for the return of flexible working hours for APOs and a proposal that civil servants represented by the AHCPS should be entitled to engage in political activity.
This is currently not permitted under Civil Service Code of Conduct.
Under the current public pay agreement, which runs until 2021, AHCPS members will likely have to wait over 13 years.
Ciaran Rohan is AHCPS general-secretary.
Speaking ahead of the conference, he said: "It is now 11 years since our member grades have had a pay increase, and it will be 13 years by the time the final scheduled FEMPI restoration payment is processed, in 2021.
“Since the FEMPI cuts were introduced, the cost of living has increased by 6% and it continues to rise, and the cost of everyday essentials like housing, food and childcare is also increasing.
“It is widely accepted and acknowledged that higher paid members of the civil and public service are earning less than they would be if they were in the private sector, and that gap is only widening."
An IPA report commissioned by the AHCPS in 2017 claimed that the salary of a PO would need to be increased by between 38% (base pay) and 60% (total pay) to match the equivalent in terms of the private sector.
“The financial emergency is long over, and our members played no small part in ensuring that our economic recovery was secured", Mr Rohan continued.
"Now we are simply looking for an even playing field for our members in terms of pay restoration, and improvements to our terms and conditions that will support members to progress in their careers, irrespective of their family circumstances."
