In this issue:
Politicians back trade unions call for referendum on water services
Larkin Anniversary Lecture
WRC talks concerning LUAS dispute
SIPTU DART drivers to ballot for industrial action
Launch of ONE Cork trade union project
Two days of talks on future of C&C workers in Tipperary
Ballot for industrial action in St. James’s Hospital car park dispute
Friends shock at sudden death of popular SIPTU figure
Legal review and City Council protection scheme welcomed by Clerys workers
Fighting to Save Ireland’s Only Oil Refinery
SIPTU Construction Sector calls for talks on future of Moore Street
Workers Republic
Condemnation of cut in funding to disability services
Dismay at number of work-related fatalities during 2015
Labour Party launches workers’ charter
Evelyn McGuinness retires from SIPTU
Basic English celebrates its 25th Anniversary
Alicia Brady Commemoration
Tara Mines - FETAC Certificates
Meath District Council
Reclaim the Vision of 1916 – the Citizens' Initiative International Poetry Competition
SIPTU Pocket Diary 2016
Fairphone
Thinking aloud about Brexit
The Secret Meeting
European Campaign for Fair Transport
Hands off public water
Tackling long-term unemployment – Can EU recommendation help?
EU to review Written Statement Directive
FREE Online Course for Trade Unionists
Supporting Quality
JLT Home Insurance
One Direct - Car Insurance
Travel Insurance
Taxback
Young Workers Network
SIPTU Basic English Scheme
Larkin Credit Union
Fair Hotel
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SIPTU and TEEU Water Guarantee was launched on Tuesday (19th January) at a protest by local authority water workers outside Leinster House.


Politicians back trade unions call for referendum on water services

Over 30 TDs and 40 councillors have signed the SIPTU/TEEU Water Guarantee which commits politicians to a constitutional referendum to keep water services in public ownership.

TDs from the Labour Party, Sinn Féin, Fianna Fáil, the Social Democrats, Anti-Austerity Alliance, People Before Profit alliance and Independents group have all publicly signed the Water Guarantee. More are expected to sign up in the coming days.

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Larkin Anniversary Lecture
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WRC talks concerning LUAS dispute
SIPTU representatives will attend talks with the management of Transdev, the operator of the LUAS light rail network operator, at the Workplace Relations Commission, on Friday, 22nd January.
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SIPTU DART drivers to ballot for industrial action
SIPTU DART drivers are to ballot during February on industrial action, up to and including strike action, in a dispute arising from a management attempt to impose rosters for a ten-minute service without the agreement of staff.
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Launch of ONE Cork trade union project

The new trade union initiative ONE Cork was launched by the Lord Mayor of Cork, Councillor Chris O’Leary, in Cork City Hall on Thursday (14th January).

ONE Cork
is a joint initiative between the 20 trade unions working in Cork city and county, the Cork Council of Trade Unions and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions that seeks to foster greater co-ordination between the organisations. The aim is to more effectively organise workers, their families and communities to influence change.


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Two days of talks on future of C&C workers in Tipperary
SIPTU representatives began two days of intensive talks with the management of the C&C Group in Borrisoleigh, County Tipperary, on Thursday (21st January). This follows the company’s announcement earlier this month that it intends to close its water bottling facility in the town.
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Ballot for industrial action in St. James’s Hospital car park dispute
SIPTU members in St James’s Hospital, Dublin, have begun a ballot for industrial action in a dispute provoked by a management attempt to impose an annual charge of up to €500 for car parking.
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Friends shock at sudden death of popular SIPTU figure
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Legal review and City Council protection scheme welcomed by Clerys workers

The Justice for the Clerys Workers campaign recorded two important victories during January with the announcement of a legal review aimed at preventing similar closures and the renewal of a Dublin City Council scheme which protects the use of the Clerys building.


Junior Minister, Ged Nash (centre), with Clerys workers after the announcement of a review of company and employment law on Thursday, 15th January.

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Fighting to Save Ireland’s Only Oil Refinery
By Adrian Kane

The workers at Phillips 66 have re-doubled their efforts to ensure that oil refining continues at Ireland’s only oil refinery in Whitegate, Co Cork. The oil refinery was originally a state owned facility but was sold to private interests in 2001. Since then it has been through a number of different owners. Currently, it is operated under license from the state by Phillips 66 (a large US owned oil corporation) until July 2016.
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SIPTU Construction Sector calls for talks on future of Moore Street

Talks should be convened between the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and groups representing all interested parties concerning the development of Moore Street, Dublin, according to the SIPTU Construction Sector. The aim of the talks would be to ensure that development of the Moore Street site adequately respects the role the area played in the 1916 Rising.

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Workers Republic
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Condemnation of cut in funding to disability services

SIPTU activists and service users have condemned a cut in funding to the Personal Assistants service which provides vital support for people with disabilities.

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Dismay at number of work-related fatalities during 2015

SIPTU Health and Safety Advisor, Sylvester Cronin, has expressed dismay that the overall number of work-related fatalities remained at the same high level in 2015 as the previous year with incidents in the construction industry showing a significant increase.

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Labour Party launches workers’ charter
A workers’ charter entitled ‘Standing Up For Working People’ was launched by the Labour Party on 12th January.

Among a number of measures aimed at improving working conditions and job security the charter commits the Labour Party to increasing the minimum wage to €11.30 over the lifetime of next Government. The charter also commits the party to ensuring that the State and all State agencies become Living Wage employers by 2018, as well as the creation of a new auto enrolment pensions system to ensure proper pension provision for every worker.
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Evelyn McGuinness retires from SIPTU

SIPTU colleagues gathered along with the friends and family of Evelyn McGuinness in the Hillgrove Hotel, Monaghan, in late November, 2015, to mark her retirement from the union after 32 years of service.

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Basic English celebrates its 25th Anniversary

Basic English Reading Night celebrates its 25th anniversary, December 2015
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Alicia Brady Commemoration

The Young Workers Network and SIPTU Dublin District Council held its annual commemoration of 1913 Lockout martyr Alicia Brady on Friday,18th December.

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Tara Mines - FETAC Certificates

Seven workers in Tara Mines receiving their FETAC Certificates after successfully completing the Team Working Course through IDEAS Institute. Also present in the photo are:  Tony Murphy (2nd Left) IDEAS who provided the training and Tara Mines Managing Director, Stefan Romedahl (far right).
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Meath District Council

In December 2015, Meath District Council made the decision to celebrate 2016 recognising the past and the future. Members (l-r): Anton McCabe, Jim Smith, John Regan, Dick McGlew, Tina O Brien, Therese Clarke, David Monaghan, Gerry O'Brien, Paddy Flood, Charlie Ashe, Cathal Rogers, Christy McQuillan, Jim O'Brien, Peter Rogers, Sean Whelan, Ollie McDonagh and guest speaker, Mick Halpenny who made a presentation on the pending 1916 anniversary.
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Reclaim the Vision of 1916 – the Citizens' Initiative International Poetry Competition


Theme:  ‘The Vision of 1916: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow’.

Inspired by the strong connections between poetry and the Easter Rising - often known as the “Poets’ Revolution” - we are proud to announce that our International Poetry Competition 2016 is now open for submissions. Many of the Rising’s leaders were accomplished poets, including Pádraic Pearse, Joseph Mary Plunkett, James Connolly – and the eminent Thomas MacDonagh. Also acclaimed for his talents as a teacher, playwright, Irish language scholar, and literary theorist, it is in MacDonagh’s honour that we have chosen for the competition’s first prize the Robert Ballagh-designed Thomas MacDonagh Medal (along with a cash award of €1,000).

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SIPTU Pocket Diary 2016
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Fairphone

Trade union members face a challenge when we want to buy a phone or a laptop: the long and obscure supply chains mean we cannot be sure that the materials and components are produced to ethical standards. PSEU member Cathal Kelly reports on the efforts of a Dutch social enterprise to bring an ethical smartphone to the market.

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Thinking aloud about Brexit
Tom Healy, Director NERI

2016 will be dominated, among other things, by the British question.  The word ‘Brexit’ has been added to the English language.  As everyone knows by now it would mean the UK (and that includes Northern Ireland) leaving the European Union following a referendum later this year.  Historically, the island of Britain has always displayed a singular approach in international affairs possibly well captured in the sentiment prevalent during the English reformation: “The Bishop of Rome hath no jurisdiction in this Realm of England." (no. 37 of the 39 Articles of Religion).  History also arranged that Britain’s neighbouring island to the west has had a complicated relationship with Britain as well as, in the distant past, Britain’s enemies and allies on the European mainland.
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The Secret Meeting
Setting the date for the Easter Rising
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European Campaign for Fair Transport
The European Campaign for Fair Transport was launched in Ireland on Monday (18th January) by SIPTU Transport and Aviation Sector activists. The campaign includes a European Citizens’ Initiative petition which calls upon the European Commission to guarantee equal treatment for transport and aviation workers across the EU.


SIPTU Transport and Aviation Sector activists (L to R) Tommy Wynn, Rosie Donnelly, Joe O'Sullivan and Stephen Hannon show their support for the European Campaign for Fair Transport.
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LIBERTY VIEW
 
LibertyHall
Hands off public water
The SIPTU/TEEU Water Guarantee campaign offers every TD and councillor in the country the opportunity to show their support for maintaining our water services in public ownership.

Local authority workers, who have delivered our water services for decades, have come up with two simple solutions to what they know to be the serious threat of the creeping privatisation of this essential utility.

Firstly, the national utility which oversees the development of our water services on a 26 county basis, Irish Water, must be re-designated from a commercial semi-state to a non-commercial state agency. This will remove the ability of private capital to seep into our water system and slowly twist it from being focused on public service to profit generation.
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ECONOMY
Tackling long-term unemployment – Can EU recommendation help?
By Ger Gibbons

Almost 110,000 men and women were registered as long-term unemployed (i.e. unemployed for at least a year) in the third quarter of 2015. While this is down from the early 2012 peak of over 200,000, it is still almost three times pre-crisis levels of 40,000. Moreover, the ongoing fall in long-term unemployment is forecast to slow over the coming years.  NERI and others have highlighted the need for new labour market policies to tackle this challenge.
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EU to review Written Statement Directive

By Ger Gibbons

On the 15th January, the European Commission issued a roadmap on this year’s planned ‘evaluation and fitness check’ of 1991 EU legislation on an employer’s obligation to inform employees of the conditions applicable to the contract or employment relationship (the ‘written statement’ directive).

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FREE Online Course for Trade Unionists
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Supporting Quality
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JLT Home Insurance
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One Direct - Car Insurance
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Travel Insurance
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Taxback
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Young Workers Network
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SIPTU Basic English Scheme

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Larkin Credit Union

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Fair Hotel
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