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ALMOST 100,000 households will pay more Tax this year following the Government’s decision in Budget 2026 not to increase tax credits or bands.

According to calculations by Revenue, 23,000 taxpayer units—individuals or couples—who did not have a tax liability last year will have one in 2026.

An additional 76,400 taxpayer units will be pushed into the higher 40% rate of income tax. This means that, even if workers receive a pay rise, a large portion of it will be taxed at the higher rate, or they will start paying the higher rate for the first time. 

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CAREDOC workers accept pay proposal ending threat of further industrial action.

SIPTU members employed by Caredoc have voted to accept a pay proposal in a ballot count which brings to an end a pay dispute involving support staff employed by the out-of-hours GP service (SIPTU, 12.1.2026).

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HOME SUPPORT workers vote for strike action. SIPTU members working as Health Care Assistants (HCAs) in the HSE [Health Service Executive] Home Support Services have voted overwhelmingly for strike action in Donegal, Clare, Cork, Kerry and Limerick. (SIPTU, 12.1.2026)

BUS EIREANN—SIPTU members in Bus Éireann vote to accept above inflation pay increases . . .  SIPTU members have voted by 62% to 38% to accept a Labour Court recommendation.

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WHICH countries have the Most Sustainable Pension Systems? 

Iceland, Denmark, and the Netherlands have the most financially sustainable pension systems, due to well-balanced contribution rates and participation.

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PENSIONS and EARLY RETIREMENTS—Based on recent RTÉ News reporting from 2025 and early 2026, the Irish Government has introduced legislation allowing employees to remain in their jobs until age 66, but it does not create a total “no limit” scenario on retirement for all.

Here are the key details regarding the new legislation and retirement age in Ireland:

• • New Right to Work Until 66:  The Employment (Contractual Retirement Ages) Act 2025 allows, but does not compel, employees to remain in their jobs until age 66, even if their contract states an earlier age (e.g., 65).
• • Targeting “Forced Retirement”:  This legislation was introduced to stop employers from forcing workers to retire at 65 when they are not yet eligible for the State Pension (which is 66).
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• • Public Servants:  Since 2018, most public servants have had the right to continue working until age 70.

• • Not a Total Removal of Age Limits:   While advocacy groups have called for the abolition of all mandatory retirement ages, the current legal changes are focused on aligning contractual retirement with the state pension age (66).
• • Flexibility & Pensions:  From 2024, people have the option to continue working up until the age of 70 to receive a higher, flexible State Pension. 

In summary, the new law prevents mandatory retirement at 65, ensuring workers can stay until the state pension age of 66, with options for some to work until 70 (RTE, 16.1.2026).

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BBC NEWS has reported extensively on the relationship between TikTok and TRADE UNIONS, primarily concerning job cuts, safety concerns, and the use of the platform itself.

Key stories covered by the BBC include:

• • Job Cuts and AI Moderation:  TikTok announced mass lay-offs in its Trust and Safety teams in the UK and Asia, aiming to replace human moderators with AI.   The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has heavily criticised this decision, calling it “corporate greed” that compromises online safety.  CWU National Officer John Chadfield stated that hundreds of UK moderators had already signed termination agreements despite the company’s public stance that the cuts were only proposals.
• • Union Recognition:   The layoffs were announced just as workers were about to vote on having their Union officially recognised, a move the CWU suggested was not a coincidence. (BBC, 1.1.2026)

These reports highlight the various intersections of the growing influence of the social media platform and the established structures of Trade Unions, from labour disputes within TikTok itself to the platform’s societal impact on Union members in other professions.  More information is available on the BBC News Trade Unions topic page.

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PAT RABBITTE—Former Labour leader steps down as Chair of Tusla (Child and Family Agency).  Pat Rabbitte, acknowledged the “complex, sometimes fraught” work of the agency as he stepped down as scheduled yesterday.

It comes after the child and family agency has witnessed a particularly challenging year  (Irish Independent, 1.1.2026)

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JAMES LARKIN’S Farewell Message to Members of the ITGWU, October, 1914.

“I HAVE found it necessary for the benefit of the Union and in the interests of its advancement to go on a lecture tour in the United States of America, it having come to my knowledge that the aims and methods and activities of the Union have aroused an amount of interest among the workers of that great continent.  Advantage has been taken by our enemies, the capitalist class, here and there to malign the leaders of the Union and the Labour Movement in this country;  to misrepresent our message, and to deliberately misconstrue our ideals, aims and methods.

We at all times have been careful to live up to our motto:   “An injury to one is an injury to all”.   We have never watered down our principles.  We have been and remain truly national in our outlook and work because of our belief in a real international labour movement.  Our convictions have been strengthened by the failure of labour movements in Great Britain, Germany, France and Belgium to stem the way of jingoism and the worship of the god of militarism by our comrades in those several countries:  they talked internationalism but refused to live it.

Our Union is a world movement.   We the honour of inspiring a new spirit into Trade Unionism.   We have been defiant.   We have defended our class by attacking.   We have been constructive by being destructive.   We have given a new spirit, a new hope to those without a spirit, and without a hope.  We have been pioneers of the newer time—“each for all, and all for each”.   That has been the belief animating and inspiring all our efforts.

‘Swiftly spring to the front,

Pioneers, Oh Pioneers!’

James Larkin spent approximately nine years in the USA, from November 1914 to April 1923. 

After an international campaign for his release from jail, he was pardoned by Governor Al Smith in January 1923 and subsequently deported, arriving back in Dublin on April 30, 1923. 

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