Soldiers have accepted pay proposals that will restore allowances and increase their take-home salary by up to €675 per year.
The Defence Forces have suffered staff shortages because of retention issues attributed to pay and conditions.
The Minister for Defence, Paul Kehoe, welcomed the pay deal, saying his priority is to bring staffing levels back up to 9,500.
But general secretary of the soldiers' representative association, PDForra, Ger Guinan, says some of the money is only a restoration of old allowances.
"They represent less than 2% of the gross salary of a member.
"I know that many members express frustration when they're out of the country.
"But effectively it was restoration. 10% of military service allowance and 10% of their allowances."
