SIPTU members joined hundreds of housing activists from across the country for a national demonstration on the housing and homeless crisis in Dublin on Tuesday (1st December).

The march began at the GPO, O’Connell Street, and concluded outside Leinster House, Kildare Street, with a rally. At the event, speakers outlined the scale of the housing crisis and what actions the Government should take to alleviate it.

The march took place on the first anniversary of the death of Jonathan Corrie, a homeless man whose body was found on Molesworth Street, close to Leinster House.

SIPTU National Campaigns and Equality Organiser, Karan O'Loughlin, said: “The issue of housing is one of the most critical social issues of our time. The long term failure of successive governments to ensure an adequate social housing supply has created an emergency. Despite the efforts by the Government to solve the housing crisis, the empirical evidence shows that more needs to be done.”

Housing activists say the homeless crisis is continuing to escalate with a recent report by the Children’s Rights Alliance stating that at least 3,000 children in the State are living in emergency accommodation.

An extensive survey of SIPTU members of the academic staff of Dublin City University (DCU) has found widespread concerns over increasing workloads and stress associated with the growing use of short term contracts.

SIPTU Education Sector Organiser, Louise O’Reilly, said: “What has emerged from the responses to this survey is that DCU academics work extremely long hours, do not feel consulted about change, are sometimes subject to bullying and harassment, feel overburdened by administrative tasks and increasingly find their jobs overwhelmingly stressful.”

SIPTU DCU Section Committee chairperson, Ronaldo Munck, said: “The survey worryingly found that, for most respondents, heavy workloads are becoming extremely stressful and many constantly feel under pressure.”

He added: “Those who work part-time and those who are employed on temporary contracts are treated worse than permanent staff. They suffer from high levels of uncertainty in relation to their job status and this has a deep impact on the quality of their lives. These contracts mean they have no control over their careers and many find themselves unable to plan ahead.”

The survey was conducted during October 2015.

For the full survey results click here

The town was attacked as part of the Israeli army’s so-called Operation Defensive Shield. During this operation, the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) intended to occupy the area for a short period and capture suspected Palestinian militants they accused of being involved in armed resistance to the occupation of the West Bank.

“We will never forget the priest who called us and said we could go to the church. Because of that favour I am still alive,” Rami told Liberty Online in an interview in Liberty Hall.

In total nearly 300 people had taken refugee in the church grounds from children to old age pensioners. Surviving mainly on boiled grass and olive oil, Kemel and his fellow militants were convinced that they would die resisting the Israeli siege which included psychological warfare such as the playing loud noise over speakers at the Church.

In October 2001, an attempted Israeli assassination had already resulted in the then 21 year old Kemel being placed in a coma for eight days and the loss of his right hand. He had been an active PLO militant since September 2000.

“The day I decided to start to fight I remember that day well. I was in my friend’s house and we were watching TV and we saw the images of the Israelis shooting Jamal al-Durrah (a 12-year-old boy whose father attempted to shelter him beside a wall as Israeli forces targeted him). We had no plan until we saw al-Durrah killed in cold blood, we didn’t even think we just got a gun and did what we did. Three of the friends I watched the television with that day are now dead, killed by the Israelis.”

After 39 days and in the face of massive international pressure the Israelis lifted the siege of the Church of Nativity. However, Israel demanded that 13 men it identified as leaders of the armed resistance had to go into exile in Europe. Kamel and his fellow militant, Jihad Jaara, were taken to Ireland.

“We only knew we were to go into exile one day before. President [Yasser] Arafat himself rang us in the Church and said ‘you are the leaders on the ground and you decide what is good for you’.”

Rami added: “When myself and Jihadi realised we were going Ireland we were very happy; my family was very happy. We knew of Ireland, that Irish people had the same history as us of occupation that we would never need to explain the idea of ‘freedom fighter’ to them.’”

Kamel has now lived in Ireland for 13 years. He has three children but has been unable to visit his homeland since 2002. He said: “My children have now all visited the Church of Nativity, I’m sure I will also see it again, some day.”

The flags of Palestine, Ireland and the United Nations flew outside Liberty Hall in Dublin on the weekend of the 27th-29th November to mark UN International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

The flags were raised during a short ceremony, at lunchtime on 27th November, attended by the Palestinian Ambassador to Ireland, Ahmad Abdelrazek, and SIPTU General President, Jack O’Connor.

“For almost five decades Palestinians have endured oppression and occupation of their land. They feel deep frustration that the possibility of peace and the establishment of a viable independent Palestinian State is vanishing. There remains an urgent need for meaningful negotiations which can guarantee that Palestinians and Israelis can co-exist in peace,” Jack O’Connor said.

The UN International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is commemorated on Sunday, 29th November. Next year, SIPTU will be undertaking a major campaign calling for the liberation of the Palestinian people and to make 2016 the year for the creation of a viable Palestinian State.

The US catering group Aramark should respect workers' right to a living wage and to negotiate collectively with their employer, according to the SIPTU Services Division Organiser, Denis Hynes. He said: “Aramark is a growing player in the food service sector in Ireland. It recently announced it is buying the Avoca chain of luxury retail outlets and cafés for a figure that it believed to exceed €60 million.

“At the same time, Aramark is cutting workers’ hours of work to fund the small increase in the minimum wage that it will have to pay from January 2016.  SIPTU is calling upon the management of Aramark to respect its workers and negotiate with them a fair share of its increasing profits.”

Aramark employs over 3,000 workers in Ireland providing catering services to the public and private sector.

SIPTU has written to the management of Crown Paints Ireland calling on it to reconsider its plan to close the company’s warehouse in Coolock, Dublin, with the loss of 23 jobs.

SIPTU Orgsaniser Jim McVeigh, said: “The loss of these jobs will have a devastating impact on our members, their families and the local community. The closure of the warehouse and the outsourcing of these jobs is not due to take place until May 2016.

“I met with our shop steward and members at the plant on Thursday (3rd December). We have formally written to the company calling on it to reverse its decision to close this profitable warehouse.”

The warehouse SIPTU Shop Steward, Johnny Kane, said: “We will await the response from the company to our letter. If the decision is not reversed, we will then contact all the local politicians in the area. The impact of these job loses would be felt throughout the local community. All but three of the workers are from the area around the warehouse which has been open since 1968.”

The document ‘Employment Guidelines for the ‘Home Care Sector: The Workers Perspective’ was launched by SIPTU, the Migrant Rights Centre Ireland and the Carers’ Association in the Mansion House, Dublin, on Monday, 30th November. The policy document contains proposals to improve the working conditions of home care workers and services for their clients. The proposals draw upon information derived from an extensive survey of workers in the Home Care Sector.

Personal Assistants (PAs) are building the “Stronger Together” campaign with SIPTU, service users, the Irish Wheelchair Association and other organisations to fight for better jobs and services.

In the run up to the forthcoming general election PAs are asserting their right to a decent job and service users to a high quality of care.

You can support the campaign by signing and sharing the petition below.

Petition Link Here

If you would like any further information or to get involved, please contact Shonagh Byrne, SIPTU on 01 8586381 / 087 7454581 or sbyrne@siptu.ie

SIPTU members working as Support Staff in Portiuncula Hospital, Ballinasloe, County Galway, engaged in a two-hour work stoppage from 2.30 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. on 13th November in protest at a unilateral decision by management to begin using private contractors to cover the emergency department.

An EU Fund is helping SIPTU members made redundant by the closure of PWA International and Lufthansa Technik Airmotive Ireland (LTAI) to re-train for a future in a diverse array of new careers.

Among those availing of the re-training opportunities made available due to funding from the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF) is Tony O’Reilly, a former SIPTU Shop Steward in PWA International. The aircraft maintenance company based in North Dublin finally ceased all operations this June with the loss of over 100 jobs.

“When they announced the plan to close our plant in 2013 the company claimed that there was overcapacity in its operations and job orders were likely to decline. We proved that this was not the case and the closure was really due to work being moved to a new plant in Singapore due to the company seeking to avail of tax  breaks over there,” Tony said.

“Because the plant closure was due to global factors, with the assistance of the union we eventually managed to secure funding from the EU Global Adjustment Fund. So did our colleagues who had been working in the Lufthansa maintenance plant just beside us which announced it was also closing in late 2013 resulting in over 400 job loses.”

He added: “The funding is absolutely brilliant. It means that for the next two years there is €11,000 available for third level education and other training courses for every person who lost their job when the plants closed. The funding is managed by the State training agency, Solas.

“I am currently doing a HDip course on coaching and coaching psychology through University College Cork in a centre in Tallaght. Its an absolutely fabulous opportunity.”

The management of Edenderry Power Ltd has refused to refer a long running dispute at the Bord na Móna power plant in Edenderry, Co. Offaly, to the Labour Court.

SIPTU Organiser, John Regan, said: “SIPTU members are angry at the refusal of management to engage on the issues in dispute at the Labour Court. This refusal has been accompanied by threats from management to lay off workers and shut down the operation of the power plant.

“In response SIPTU is making a Section 20 (1) referral to the Labour Court. This means our members will be bound by any recommendation.”

He added: “The issues that will be referred include an outstanding 3.5% pay increase and the restoration of an annual pay review.  Also, the fact that management has failed to honour the workers’ terms and conditions of employment which should include collective bargaining rights within the Group of Unions structures in line with the rest of the Bord na Móna Group.”

SIPTU Health Division Organiser, Paul Bell, has called on the Minister for Health, Leo Varadkar, to publish the recommendations of the HSE National Ambulance Review so that work on developing the service can commence. He said members will consider proposals for strike action if there is no move to increase staff numbers in the ambulance service.

Paul Bell said: “SIPTU members will be meeting over the coming month across the country to consider proposals for a ballot on strike action in order to secure increased recruitment and funding for the service.”

“The Minister for Health has had possession of an executive summary of this independent review since December 2014 but has yet to make it public. This is even more surprising when it is considered that almost two years ago he made a public commitment to the Joint Oireachtas Health Committee to conduct an urgent examination of the service."

It is understood the review highlights the requirement for the recruitment of 250 to 300 frontline ambulance professionals and an updating of the fleet.

An increase in the number of Health Care Assistants would help alleviate the worsening staff shortages and overcrowding crisis in hospitals across the country, according to the SIPTU Health Division Organiser, Paul Bell.

“SIPTU has repeatedly called for the immediate deployment of Health Care Assistants to alleviate the pressure on nursing staff in hospitals”, said Bell.

“To this end, SIPTU has requested that the HSE creates 800 new Health Care Assistant positions. Such a move would reduce the staff to patient ratio in our hospitals and the exorbitant costs of hiring temporary agency staff, which is running in excess of €27 million for this year alone.

“The Minister for Health, Leo Vardakar, and HSE officials need to immediately commence a dialogue on increasing the number and roles of Health Care Assistants with the union which represents these workers.”

By SIPTU General Secretary Joe O’Flynn

Speaking at the graveside for the burial of former NEC member, Dick Duff on Wednesday 25th November, General Secretary Joe O'Flynn said: Dick was active for over fifty years serving the ITGWU, subsequently SIPTU, in virtually every voluntary capacity. From his time as a young boy working in Beamish and Crawford he was imbued with the desire to improve the position of his fellow workers and their families through his union activity.  He served at section level within the brewery and from there became active in the Cork No 2 Branch in 1963, later serving as Branch president.

Dick was very supportive but tenacious, challenging everything that he was uncomfortable with until he was satisfied that it was in the best interest of the members. At local level he was active on the Cork District Council and the Cork Council of Trade Unions. On retirement he became active in the Retired Members Section at local, regional and national levels.

He fervently believed in the principle of an egalitarian society where justice and fairness prevailed for all.  It was therefore the ultimate accolade for Dick when he was successfully elected to the National Executive Council of the ITGWU in 1984. He was enormously influential and commanded great respect. He served on the NEC of the ITGWU and later SIPTU for twenty years.

Dick’s industrial and union work was complemented by his activity at political level in the Labour Party. He was enormously loyal to the union, and while often critical internally, he would never allow a bad word to be said by anyone from the outside. Dick inspired many shop stewards to progress in the Union and was central to many staff being appointed to senior positions when he served as a member of the Staff Recruitment Sub-committee.

On behalf of my fellow Officers Jack O’Connor and Gene Mealy, the National Executive Council, his many colleagues, friends and members of the union, I want to express our deepest sympathy to Dick’s wife Norma, his daughter Lilian and sons, Paul, Kieran, Brian, and Richard, daughters-in-law, Claire, Gillian and Miriam, grandchildren, nephews, nieces, relatives and friends.

Preliminary research findings published in November by TASC confirms the concerns of union members about increased levels of exploitation in the hospitality sector.

SIPTU Services Division Organiser, Ethel Buckley, said: “The hospitality sector is a very important part of the Irish economy. In recent years, workers in this sector have had to confront decreasing real earnings, greater physical demands and diminishing career prospects.

She added: “A particular issue which is highlighted in the TASC research is the situation in accommodation departments in hotels across the country where female staff have to regularly turn very heavy mattresses.

This heavy work combined with a policy of ‘speed up’ being enforced by employers, which demands that workers increase the number of rooms cleaned per hour, is leading to a stark increase in occupational injuries, like back strains.

“Earlier this month the SIPTU Services Division launched the ‘Make My Workplace Safe’ initiative which is aimed at publicising such bad employer behaviour in the hospitality sector.

To read the TASC research highlights click here http://www.tasc.ie/download/pdf/wciphighlightshospitality.pdf