Thousands of Irish police officers, firefighters and other emergency workers will hold protests and may strike against government plans to cut their pay, a group representing their unions said yesterday.

Finance Minister Brian Lenihan reaffirmed on Wednesday his determination to cut public-sector pay to help stabilise one of Europe’s shakiest public finances, even if it means confronting unions.

The 24/7 Frontline Service Alliance representing emergency workers is planning protests, including a march to Parliament on November 11 led by vintage emergency service vehicles.

“(This is) to demonstrate in a visual way what the government wants to do to public services, take us back 25-30 years,” Liam Doran, general secretary of the Irish Nurses Organisation, told reporters.

The alliance will also stage a strike before the end of November if it cannot dissuade the government from cutting wages, it said. Some emergency workers such as certain police officers have limited rights to strike by law.

“Unions representing 100,000 frontline public service workers are to begin balloting members immediately for industrial action in case the government delivers on its threats to introduce further cuts in pay and services,” the alliance said in a statement.

A levy on public-sector pensions – already an effective pay cut – introduced earlier this year prompted police officers to join an unusually large demonstration of about 100,000 people in Dublin in February.

Separately, the Impact trade union, which has already threatened a strike by 55,000 of its public sector employee members, said it would also propose a 24-hour stoppage across the whole of the public sector on November 24.

“There has been a massive shift in opinion among public servants since the imposition of the so-called pension levy last March,” Impact said.