Small business group ISME has called for a 12-month pay pause in the public sector and freeze on recruitment in the sector for two years.
In its pre-Budget submission, the group also warned Finance Minister Brian Lenihan not to make up any shortfall in the public finances with increased taxes.
Chief executive Mark Fielding expressed particular concern about local charges, in the light of a reduced contribution from the central government to local authorities' budgets.
ISME also warned that cutting back on important infrastructural projects would be a mistake and would do 'further damage to an economy that requires international standard infrastructure'.
