Ireland's criminal law barristers have withdrawn their services in an effort to secure better pay and conditions for the profession.
Co Cavan Counsel, Seamus Clarke, says the move has been carried out as part of a concerted effort to secure an independent mechanism that is is time limited, meaningful and binding on the Government to sort out pay at all levels of the profession.
Speaking on this morning's Joe Finnegan Show, Mr Clarke highlighted how cuts that took place between 2008 and 2011 have never been restored yet pay restoration has been evident for those in the public service working in the criminal justice system.
He says the profession is hemorrhaging barristers because of what is happening and this latest move is about bringing improvements to the system. Mr Clarke added that the elimination of pay restoration has now become an injustice to barristers across the country. "Barristers prosecuting cases in the Circuit Court aren't making the huge sums of money that people might think they are.
"They are on very ordinary wages and this is despite the fact that they have invested in their education and gone to college for a long number of years. The problem we are finding at the Bar Counsel level is that the criminal justice system is hemorrhaging barristers.
"So, after six years, two thirds of barristers who come into criminal law leave it because of the poor rates of pay. They either go into civil law because it's much more profitable or they leave law altogether and go into some other salary position within the system," he said.
