SIPTU have advised members to ignore a recent intimidatory statement, from the Nurses and Midwives Board of Ireland (NMBI), with regard to the current campaign of opposition to the 50% increase in retention fee being sought by that organisation.
SIPTU Sector Organiser, Kevin Figgis, said: “SIPTU and the other nursing unions have reiterated their advice, to all members, in relation to the attempt by NMBI to impose a fee increase. That is to make no payment at this time in response to renewal notices as the matter has been raised under the Haddington Road Agreement with the Department of Health.
SIPTU have advised members to ignore a recent intimidatory statement, from the Nurses and Midwives Board of Ireland (NMBI), with regard to the current campaign of opposition to the 50% increase in retention fee being sought by that organisation.
SIPTU Sector Organiser, Kevin Figgis, said: “SIPTU and the other nursing unions have reiterated their advice, to all members, in relation to the attempt by NMBI to impose a fee increase. That is to make no payment at this time in response to renewal notices as the matter has been raised under the Haddington Road Agreement with the Department of Health.
“All available nurses and midwives are also requested to attend a public protest outside the NMBI headquarters in Carysfort Avenue, Blackrock, Co Dublin on Tuesday 18th November, at 12.00 p.m.
He added: “The three nursing unions have also advised their members that the NMBI’s own rules ensure that no decision, about non-payment, can come before its board prior to March. Also, the HSE, last year, gave the 30th May as the last date for production of confirmation that the retention fee had been paid.
“Against this factual background the NMBI’s recent unsigned statement, suggesting that the disputed fee, of €150, has to be paid, in full, by the 1st January, is misleading, disingenuous, intimidatory and very divisive. Furthermore the unions believe it confirms the level of separation between the NMBI and the professions it is charged with regulating.”
In maintaining their campaign of opposition the three unions have re-affirmed their support for a retention fee, of €100, which is the same retention fee levied upon all other allied health professionals, the need for a regulatory body that protects the public by ensuring that nurses and midwives can practice in an environment conducive to the highest quality care through safe practice and that all expenditure by this statutory regulatory body is subject to openness and full transparency with tighter controls of public relations and legal costs.
The fight for pay rises and the use of social media for union organising was to the fore of discussions at the SIPTU Manufacturing Biennial Conference.
Talks by international guests, lively debate on motions and musical performances were all packed into the one-day conference on Friday, 7th November. The event was attended by 200 delegates representing over 40,000 workers across all manufacturing industry sectors including pharmaceuticals, electronics, chemicals and agribusiness.
SIPTU Manufacturing Division Organiser, Gerry McCormack addressing delegates at the Division's Biennial Conference
The fight for pay rises and the use of social media for union organising was to the fore of discussions at the SIPTU Manufacturing Biennial Conference.
Talks by international guests, lively debate on motions and musical performances were all packed into the one-day conference on Friday, 7th November. The event was attended by 200 delegates representing over 40,000 workers across all manufacturing industry sectors including pharmaceuticals, electronics, chemicals and agribusiness.
The battle against the privatisation of vital public services and utilities was central to debate at the two-day Biennial SIPTU Public Administration and Community Division Conference on 5th-6th November.
Addressing over 200 delegates on the first day of the conference, SIPTU Public Administration and Community Division Organiser, Gene Mealy, said: “The last time we met, it was against the background of the most severe economic crisis this country has ever faced. As we emerge from this crisis we have an opportunity to change people’s attitude to society and in particular to the delivery of good quality public services”.
SIPTU member Miriam Stewart from Galway Rural Development at the conference
SIPTU members Ruth Cleary, Mark McDonald and Barbara Kearns
The battle against the privatisation of vital public services and utilities was central to debate at the two-day Biennial SIPTU Public Administration and Community Division Conference on 5th-6th November.
Addressing over 200 delegates on the first day of the conference, SIPTU Public Administration and Community Division Organiser, Gene Mealy, said: “The last time we met, it was against the background of the most severe economic crisis this country has ever faced. As we emerge from this crisis we have an opportunity to change people’s attitude to society and in particular to the delivery of good quality public services”.
Mealy highlighted the threat from privatisation and outsourcing, describing the latter as the “greatest threat to the delivery of good quality public services”. He said that these threats were particularly evident in the Community Sector, which did not enjoy the protections negotiated as part of the Haddington Road Agreement.
In conclusion he said: “Workers are starting to fight back, wanting to get on the front foot to reclaim the lost ground and advance their pay and conditions of employment. We must grasp this opportunity to meet the possibilities that now present themselves, to continue to be the movement to advance the rights and interests of working people”.
The current national debate around the establishment of Irish Water produced the liveliest discussion at the conference. An emergency motion was proposed by the SIPTU Local Authorities Sector calling on delegates to back the call for a referendum to enshrine the public ownership of water supply in the Constitution.
The motion was unanimously supported following a vigorous debate during which some delegates called for support for the Right2Water campaign and voiced opposition to water charges.
During her address, SIPTU Vice President, Patricia King, expanded on the scale of the privatisation agenda, which the union as a whole was confronting. In reference to its impact on the Community Sector she said the long established grant based system of State funding for the sector was under threat as the Department of Social Protection sought to “embrace new models of service delivery”. In plain language she said this meant pitting community organisations against each other in a competitive tendering process.
Speaking in support of a motion calling for collective bargaining for Community Sector workers, activist Barbara Kearns stated, “We must stop the race to the bottom in wages and conditions in the Community Sector”.
She added: “Establishing a mechanism to agree pay and conditions is a key defence for workers against the privatisation agenda”.
Other motions supported by delegates included a called for a pay restoration campaign, an ending of the public service recruitment moratorium and support for the SIPTU Secure Retirement Campaign.
SIPTU National Organiser, Joe Cunningham, reported that 3,000 workers had joined the SIPTU community sector in the past two years. He stated, “We are building a union where activists are making decisions, are leading campaigns and winning for workers”.
The SIPTU Youth Workers’ campaign was highlighted as an example of successfully organising workers through actions and political struggle.
Other speakers included ETUC Chief Economist, Ronald Janssen who led a debate on the economic crisis and how it had been used to undermine the concept of a Social Europe. Nevin Economic Research Institute Senior Research Officer, Micheál Collins, outlined the threat of outsourcing of public services questioning both their effectiveness and their effect on workers’ conditions.
The conference was also addressed by historian, Brian Hanley, on the impact of the First World War on the Irish working class. He said that the conflict should not be glorified but remembered with a sense of “rage and anger”.
SIPTU has called on the Government to defer the water charge payment due in Spring of 2015. SIPTU President, Jack O’Connor, said that each family must be guaranteed a free and adequate supply of treated water to meet its normal domestic needs.
He said that the Government must find a way of providing for the new investment required to fund the provision of the treated water supply while retaining it in public control and ownership.
SIPTU has called on the Government to defer the water charge payment due in Spring of 2015. SIPTU President, Jack O’Connor, said that each family must be guaranteed a free and adequate supply of treated water to meet its normal domestic needs.
He said that the Government must find a way of providing for the new investment required to fund the provision of the treated water supply while retaining it in public control and ownership.
The SIPTU General President also said that recognised the “success” of the Right2Water campaign.
Addressing the SIPTU Manufacturing Division Conference on Friday (7th November), Jack O’Connor said: “The [Right2Water] campaign has already achieved victories and I want to acknowledge that, because the Ministers over in the Government would not be scrabbling around today trying to find a solution where it not for the success of that campaign to date”.
Previously, Jack O’Connor said that, “The proposed Irish Water charging structure is profoundly regressive and inequitable and that is a view shared by the tens of thousands of people who came out and protested. The impact of these charges affects those on lower to middle incomes to a much greater degree than wealthy people. There are far too many people who simply cannot pay and too many more who will find it extremely difficult to do so,”
He added: “SIPTU supports the call for a constitutional change which will enshrine the public ownership of water and its supply. This call, which has been made by the Green Party and a number of progressive organisations, will end any drift towards the privatisation of water. “None of the major political parties would openly support privatisation, some because they are deeply ideologically opposed to it, others because it would be so unpopular. Nevertheless, it will still come about by stealth and very quickly too if the citizens of Ireland do not vote for such a constitutional change”.
Jack O’Connor also reiterated the SIPTU call for a mechanism to fully offset the cost of every households ‘normal need for water’, while preserving the incentive for conservation. He added: “It's not rocket science. A refundable tax credit is the way to do it. Fiddling around with the issue won't cut the mustard. It will simply prolong the crisis. In the end, and possibly very quickly, Irish Water won't be able to collect its revenues thus rendering it insolvent and we will sleepwalk into the privatisation of public water supply”.
SIPTU has called for workers in the beef industry to be compensated for the loss of earnings they have suffered as a result of the Irish Farmers Association (IFA) blockade on beef processing plants.
SIPTU Sector Organiser, John Dunne, said: “Many beef plant workers have lost two days’ pay this week as a result of the IFA’s 48-hour blockade of beef plants. This is in addition to one day’s pay lost as a result of a pervious 24-hour IFA blockade.
SIPTU has called for workers in the beef industry to be compensated for the loss of earnings they have suffered as a result of the Irish Farmers Association (IFA) blockade on beef processing plants.
SIPTU Sector Organiser, John Dunne, said: “Many beef plant workers have lost two days’ pay this week as a result of the IFA’s 48-hour blockade of beef plants. This is in addition to one day’s pay lost as a result of a pervious 24-hour IFA blockade.
“Workers should be compensated for their loss of earnings as a result of these blockades. SIPTU will be seeking to have our members compensated for their losses through discussions with employers.
“SIPTU is also contacting the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney, seeking trade union representation on the Beef Forum. This would ensure that workers in the beef industry have their concerns heard. Representation on the Beef Forum would also be utilised to ensure that the issue of worker representation and their right to organise is resolved on an industry wide basis”.
John Dunne added: “Many workers in the industry are surviving on minimum rates of pay while their terms and conditions have starkly declined since the onset of the recession in 2008. Several major employers in the industry also continue to resist any attempts by trade unions to organise and represent workers. This has resulted in a continuing decline in wages and conditions in the industry.
“While SIPTU members understand the position of producers and their attempt to get a fair price for their product there is concern that they are not treating the beef plant workers as partners in the industry. Those involved throughout the beef supply chain and retailers must accept they also have a responsibility to ensure that workers are fairly treated. To this end, SIPTU welcomes that many retailers have signed up to the Ethical Trading Initative (E.T.I.) committing them to ensuring fair treatment of workers and their right to representation”.
The Irish Congress of Trade Unions on Tuesday (11th November), called for the restoration of wage-setting mechanisms in key sectors of the economy such as construction, in order to halt the race to the bottom in wages and standards and to restore some protection for workers’ livelihoods.
The Irish Congress of Trade Unions on Tuesday (11th November), called for the restoration of wage-setting mechanisms in key sectors of the economy such as construction, in order to halt the race to the bottom in wages and standards and to restore some protection for workers’ livelihoods.
Addressing the Joint Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Congress Vice-President Patricia King said:
“We need to bring back some balance for workers in key sectors through the restoration of wage-setting mechanisms. In areas such as construction, the absence of these mechanisms has seen wages and standards undermined in a race to the bottom.
“Restoration of these mechanisms in sectors where they previously applied would help address this problem and provide some certainty and protection in relation to peoples’ livelihoods,” King said.
The Congress delegation of Vice-President Patricia King and Legal Affairs Officer, Esther Lynch was addressing the Joint Committee in relation to the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Bill 2014.
A full copy of the Congress submission is available here.
SIPTU representatives will be among a delegation of Irish community activists visiting the European Parliament to discuss the adverse impact of the ‘alignment process’ on the LEADER rural development scheme on Tuesday, 18th November.
The delegation, which will include SIPTU Organisers Eddie Mullins and Trevor Quinn, as well as representatives of the INOU, ICTU and the Disability Federation of Ireland, has been invited to visit the Parliament by Sinn Féin MEP, Liadh O’ Riada.
SIPTU representatives will be among a delegation of Irish community activists visiting the European Parliament to discuss the adverse impact of the ‘alignment process’ on the LEADER rural development scheme on Tuesday, 18th November.
The delegation, which will include SIPTU Organisers Eddie Mullins and Trevor Quinn, as well as representatives of the INOU, ICTU and the Disability Federation of Ireland, has been invited to visit the Parliament by Sinn Féin MEP, Liadh O’ Riada.
SIPTU Sector Organiser, Eddie Mullins, said: “We will inform MEPs and EU officials of the substantial job losses that will result from Government plans to place control of the LEADER rural development scheme in the hands of local authority management.
“This so-called ‘alignment’ of community development with local authorities will result in the closure of Local Development Companies. These organisations have a very important place in their communities, administering important schemes and bringing a strategic approach to community and rural development”.
He added: “Local Development Companies have the benefit of years of experience and a genuine community ethos. Their removal will lead to job losses and seriously damage the delivery of LEADER funded schemes”.
Ireland South Sinn Féin MEP, Liadh Ní Riada, said: “The current phase of the 'alignment' process is putting the jobs of many local development and community workers in jeopardy. Already many workers have been put on protective notice.
“At its core, this process is about taking control of LEADER funding. It is a power grab by the Department of Environment, and it undermines the bottom-up, community-based approach that has made the LEADER programme such a success.
“This vital funding for rural areas will now come under the control of local authority management, acting under direction from the Minister for the Environment. What we are witnessing is nothing short of a power grab by Government”.
The delegation will also include CEOs and LEADER Programme Managers from several local development companies. Delegation members will meet with Rural Development management from the European Commission, Irish Government and Northern Ireland Executive representatives as well as Irish MEPs.
They will also meet with representatives from the European Investment Bank and the European LEADER Association for Rural Development.
SIPTU members in the Kerry Women’s Refuge and Support Services, based in Tralee, Co. Kerry, will begin industrial action on Tuesday, 18th November, in a dispute concerning a unilateral change to workers' shift patterns.The decision to commence industrial action at the facility follows a management decision to impose changes to workers’ shift patterns, without agreement, on Monday (3rd November). This move will result in an up to 50% reduction in work for out of hours support staff and severe consequential effects for other workers in the service.
SIPTU members in the Kerry Women’s Refuge and Support Services, based in Tralee, Co. Kerry, will begin industrial action on Tuesday, 18th November, in a dispute concerning a unilateral change to workers' shift patterns.The decision to commence industrial action at the facility follows a management decision to impose changes to workers’ shift patterns, without agreement, on Monday (3rd November). This move will result in an up to 50% reduction in work for out of hours support staff and severe consequential effects for other workers in the service.
SIPTU Community Sector Organiser, Eddie Mullins, said: “On Monday (3rd November) unilateral changes to our members' shift patterns at the refuge were imposed. One of the support team workers at the facility offered a revised roster for consideration by management. This revised roster has the support of SIPTU members but was rejected out of hand by the general manager of the facility.
“Unfortunately, this left SIPTU members at the refuge with no option but to commence industrial action. A ballot had been conducted early last month where members voted to take industrial action if management attempted to force through roster changes without agreement.
“The industrial action will commence on Tuesday, 18th November with SIPTU members withdrawing their labour and mounting a picket at the main entrance to the refuge from 8.30 a.m. to 10.30 a.m. This action will be repeated each subsequent Tuesday until this dispute is resolved.
“From 8.30 a.m. on 18th November, SIPTU members will also not carry out any duties previously performed by Community Employment participants which include maintenance, childcare, housekeeping, laundry, reception, donations and opening the playroom. During the period of the dispute SIPTU members will also refuse to co-operate with any fundraising for the facility”.
Eddie Mullins added: “Our members are dedicated and committed in their work within the refuge. However, they now feel mistreated by their employer and this goes against the very ethos of the refuge itself. SIPTU members are saddened by the approach taken by the Board of Directors in their handling of the situation and believe that it has breached its own standards in respect of its employees”.
Kerry Women’s Refuge operates as a non-profit organisation and is registered as a charity. It is run by a voluntary board of directors which employs one manager and seven full-time staff. The facility provides services to women and children who are victims of domestic violence.
A joint campaign called YesEquality has been launched by GLEN, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) and Marriage Equality encouraging people to register so that they can vote in next year’s referendum on marriage equality. The campaign is being run in collaboration with the ICTU, USI and LGBT organisations across the country. It’s the first step in a co-ordinated campaign for a Yes vote and is aimed at encouraging young people, in particular, to seize the opportunity to help shape a new and fairer society.
A joint campaign called Yes Equality has been launched by GLEN, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) and Marriage Equality encouraging people to register so that they can vote in next year’s referendum on marriage equality. The campaign is being run in collaboration with the ICTU, USI and LGBT organisations across the country. It’s the first step in a co-ordinated campaign for a Yes vote and is aimed at encouraging young people, in particular, to seize the opportunity to help shape a new and fairer society.
November is registration month.
Recently Tiernan Brady, Policy Director, GLEN visited Liberty Hall and met representatives of the ICTU and SIPTU including Congress Equality Officer David Joyce, Ethel Buckley and Dan O’Neill, both of SIPTU to discuss our support for the registration campaign.
The trade union movement has a long history of fighting for gay rights, a record sometimes ignored or forgotten even by LGBT activists and organisations. Yet those who attended the public launch of the SIPTU LGBTQ members’ network last February could not but be reminded of that proud legacy as we watched Edmund Lynch’s fascinating documentary, ‘Did Anyone Notice Us? Gay Visibility in the Irish Media 1973-1993’.
It was also worth noting that the gay rights movement as we know it effectively began not “up there in Dublin” as the popular cliché would have it but in Cork, through the efforts of trade union members such as Kieran Rose, now Chair of GLEN, who used his union membership and association with Cork Council of Trade Unions, to push the equality agenda.
Justifiably proud of the union’s unique history in the struggle against injustice and inequality SIPTU can now help make history in Ireland by campaigning to extend the rights and responsibilities of civil marriage to all who wish to make that choice.
SIPTU has already identified the issue of civil marriage equality as a trade union issue, a priority for the Equality Council working with SIPTU LBGTQ network.
There are those who question whether the campaign is a trade union issue. The struggle for gay rights cannot be viewed in isolation from the wider struggle of the trade union movement. Some unions, including my own, do not take a direct role in election or referendum campaigns but as individual trade union members we can all play our part.
Social solidarity is the cornerstone of our movement. If we are to advance the rights of LGBT people we will do so with the love, respect and support of the majority of men and women in this Republic, led by the partners, brothers and sisters of gay and lesbian couples.
Irish society has traditionally viewed marriage as having a special place, as a public expression of love and commitment. By voting Yes next year – and we do not know the date yet, trade union members will be according same sex couples the right to equality.
For those who advocate a Yes vote the challenge will be to address the fears of those who are uncertain or fearful about change. We must do so with respect and I am hopeful that hearts can and will be won by informed strategic campaigning. After all no one is being asked to surrender any rights, merely to extend the rights they enjoy to others.
Yes, significant gains were made with the introduction of civil partnership but there remains an unacceptable hierarchy of rights based on sexual orientation. On a daily basis gay and lesbian workers still feel compelled to hide their sexual identify. Despite widespread acceptance of gay people the reality is that for many people the workplace can be a cold place for those who are deemed to be different. Civil marriage equality for all would be a powerful public statement not of tolerance but of acceptance.
The benefit of having experienced civil partnership is that so many of us now have first- hand experience of the joy of seeing people who love one another enter into public commitments in the presence of friends and family. It’s more than that of course. Civil partnership has also brought about legal certainty for LGBT couples but it is not full equality.
Getting people registered to vote is a critical first step in helping deliver victory. Even though the polls are showing strong support for equal status for lesbian and gay people we cannot afford to be complacent. Recent referendums have shown how quickly outcomes can change and if you’re not registered you can’t vote for marriage. Simple as that!
All of the recent polls have consistently shown high levels of support for equal marriage across society. This is most notable in the younger age groups of 35 and under. However these groups are traditionally the ones with the lowest turnout at elections and referendums. In the recent children’s referendum turnout amongst the under 25s was a mere 19%. The YesEquality campaign is aiming to significantly boost that figure and the turnout figures in general, as part of getting the biggest possible vote in favour out to the polling stations.
SIPTU members can help motivate and mobilise workers to get out, get their work colleagues, friends and family out and register to vote.
Remember, just as in your union, decisions are made by people who turn up and cast their vote.
For further details go to GLEN.ie or look up YesEquality on Facebook.
Séamus Dooley is Irish Secretary of the NUJ and a board member of GLEN.
SIPTU has called on the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government to abandon a proposal to cut Dublin’s main anti-poverty programme by more than €740,000 in 2015.
The cut is proposed for the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) in Dublin which delivers assistance to people through community organisations across the city.
SIPTU has called on the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government to abandon a proposal to cut Dublin’s main anti-poverty programme by more than €740,000 in 2015.
The cut is proposed for the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) in Dublin which delivers assistance to people through community organisations across the city.
SIPTU shop steward and community worker, Gerard McLaughlin, said: “The proposed budget allocation for SICAP in 2015 includes a reduction of over €740,000 for the Dublin City Council area. The total proposed cut to the SICAP programme nationally is €2 million. If such a cut is imposed it will have a massive impact on the ability of community organisations to assist those in the greatest need”.
SIPTU Community Sector Organiser, Darragh O’Connor, said: “Anti-poverty programmes such as SICAP have been savaged over the past six years with funding cuts. Dublin is the area with the greatest need for the alleviation of poverty, yet it is taking the biggest funding cut”.
He added: “Unless the Department reverses this decision community programmes will close in Dublin”.
Government ministers have supported a SIPTU demand that restaurant and hotel owners join the new Joint Labour Council (JLC) process established to agree conditions for workers in the sector.
In the lead up to last month’s Budget announcement, SIPTU called on the Government to remove the hospitality sector’s special VAT rate of 9% if employers continued to refuse to engage in the JLC process.
Government ministers have supported a SIPTU demand that restaurant and hotel owners join the new Joint Labour Council (JLC) process established to agree conditions for workers in the sector.
In the lead up to last month’s Budget announcement, SIPTU called on the Government to remove the hospitality sector’s special VAT rate of 9% if employers continued to refuse to engage in the JLC process.
In his Budget, Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan, maintained the sector’s reduced VAT rate. However, in response to the SIPTU demand both Ministers at the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton, and Junior Minster, Ged Nash, called on employers to enter the JLC process.
Nash said the reformed JLCs were not just about setting minimum pay terms for workers but also about industry standards. He added that all sides should “grasp the opportunity” that existed under the new system.
SIPTU Services Division Organiser, John King said: “Employers in the sector have refused to engage in discussions for a new Joint Labour Committee which would set fair wage rates and conditions for workers in hotels and restaurants across the country.
“Although it is government policy that the workers in these industries should be covered by a JLC, employers have been given an effective veto over this policy by refusing to engage with trade unions and the labour relations machinery of the State”.
In the lead up to the Budget announcement SIPTU released new research that showed that the VAT reduction was not used to improve wages for workers in the sector or passed on in the form of lower prices to customers.
The research showed that in the period before July 2011 (when VAT was reduced) and September 2011, only 24% of restaurants surveyed decreased prices. There was no price change in 64% of restaurants while 20% actually increased prices.
In a further comparison between pre-July 2011 prices and those in September 2013 it was found that 24% decreased prices while there was no change in 40% of restaurants surveyed and 36% of restaurants actually increased prices.
These findings are in stark contrast to the claim by the Restaurants Association of Ireland in September 2013 that 100% of its members had passed on the VAT reduction to customers.
The SIPTU research also showed earnings in the hospitality sector fell by 3.4% between early 2011 and the middle of 2014, indicating that the collapse of the JLC wage setting mechanism in June 2011 paved the way for many employers to drive down wages.
JobBridge figures for September 2014 also indicated that one in ten participants in the activation scheme are in the hospitality sector.
John King added: “The ‘race to the bottom’ in wages in the sector means employers are putting the burden on the State to pay a living wage through Jobseekers Allowance and Family Income Supplement”.
SIPTU has welcomed the Government’s decision to delete a section of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) Act 2009 which gave public service employers the ability to cut workers’ core pay and adjust working hours without agreement.
SIPTU Health Division Organiser, Paul Bell, said: “The cabinet decision on Wednesday (29th October) to accept the request by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin to delete this key clause in the FEMPI legislation is welcomed by SIPTU members.
SIPTU has welcomed the Government’s decision to delete a section of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) Act 2009 which gave public service employers the ability to cut workers’ core pay and adjust working hours without agreement.
SIPTU Health Division Organiser, Paul Bell, said: “The cabinet decision on Wednesday (29th October) to accept the request by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin to delete this key clause in the FEMPI legislation is welcomed by SIPTU members.
“SIPTU has always opposed the FEMPI legislation which provided unacceptable powers to Government ministers to unilaterally vary workers’ terms and conditions of employment. The decision to begin the unwinding of this punitive legislation will provide confidence to our members that the Government is serious about pay recovery negotiations which are expected to begin early next year".
He added: “At the recent SIPTU Health Division Biennial Conference, Minister Howlin made clear to members his commitment to ensuring that low and middle income health workers begin to experience a dividend from the economic recovery and the reform process. The beginning of the repealing of FEMPI is an important first step in ensuring this process is successful in returning to workers the earnings that they have lost in recent years”.
The change agreed by Government involves the deletion of Section 2B of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) Act 2009, which was introduced as a limited contingency measure to the legislation in 2013.
Social Justice Ireland's annual Social Policy Conference 'Planning and Delivering a Fairer Future - Values, Democracy and Social Provision' will take place on Tuesday 18th November in Croke Park Conference Centre. A range of speakers from Ireland and abroad will address questions regarding planning for and delivering a fairer future.
Social Justice Ireland's annual Social Policy Conference 'Planning and Delivering a Fairer Future - Values, Democracy and Social Provision' will take place on Tuesday 18th November in Croke Park Conference Centre. A range of speakers from Ireland and abroad will address questions regarding planning for and delivering a fairer future.
SPEAKERS
Seán O'Riain – Professor of Sociology, National University of Ireland Maynooth and is also with the National Institute for Regional and Spatial Analysis. Author of 'The Rise and Fall of Ireland's Celtic Tiger: Liberalism, Boom and Bust' (2014). Topic: Ireland's Boom and Bust – lessons for the years ahead
Eoin Reeves - Senior Lecturer, Director of Privatisation & Public Private Partnerships Research Group, University of Limerick. Author of 'The Not So Good, The Bad and The Ugly: Over 12 Years of PPPs in Ireland' (2013) Topic: Providing Public Services and Infrastructure – PPPs and other options
Colin Scott – Principal, College of Human Sciences and Professor of EU Regulation & Governance at UCD. Topic: Regulation, Accountability and Democracy – to look at the whole area of providers/funders, public/private and the role of regulation in these contexts
Seán Healy, Brigid Reynolds and Michelle Murphy – Social Justice Ireland. Co-authors of 'Steps Towards a Fairer Future' Topic: A Question of Values: Responsibility for Providing Public Services and Infrastructure?
'My Five-Point Plan for Ireland's Development' These will be presented by:
Conor Killeen, CEO, Key Capital
David Begg, General Secretary, ICTU
Patricia O'Hara, Chairperson of the National Statistics Board.
Statutory Lecturer in the UCD Sutherland School of Law, Anthony Kerr is the author of numerous books including, more recently, ‘The Trade Union and Industrial Relations Acts’ (4th ed, 2013). He is also Vice-Chair of the Employment Law Association of Ireland, a member of the Executive Committee of the International Society for Labour & Social Security Law, a national reporter for the International Labour Law Reports and the Irish representative on the European Labour Law Network.
Pay rises for workers’ are top of the agenda for SIPTU members in the private and public sector. After years of economic crisis during which workers have borne the brunt of others failures the time has come for the rebalancing of earnings in favour of the real wealth producers.
The issue of pay was prominent at the two recent biennial SIPTU Divisional Conferences. At the Manufacturing Division Conference delegates heard that the Division's pay strategy had seen rises of on average 2% per annum delivered for over 50,000 workers.
At the Public Administration and Community Division conference delegates heard that their endurance during the economic crisis must now be recognised by the return of pay they had lost. Such ‘pay restoration’ was now a key issue and will be raised in discussions with Government in the coming months.
Pay rises for workers’ are top of the agenda for SIPTU members in the private and public sector. After years of economic crisis during which workers have borne the brunt of others failures the time has come for the rebalancing of earnings in favour of the real wealth producers.
The issue of pay was prominent at the two recent biennial SIPTU Divisional Conferences. At the Manufacturing Division Conference delegates heard that the Division's pay strategy had seen rises of on average 2% per annum delivered for over 50,000 workers.
At the Public Administration and Community Division conference delegates heard that their endurance during the economic crisis must now be recognised by the return of pay they had lost. Such ‘pay restoration’ was now a key issue and will be raised in discussions with Government in the coming months.
The pay rise campaign is not only based on the immediate interests of union members but also part of wider strategy of boosting the economy through consumer spending. More money in the pockets of workers means more money circulating in local communities and more tax revenues. The message is clear - what is good for workers is good for our society.
The union has weathered one of the worse storms it has faced in its history and is now on the front foot seeking to advance the standard of living for members and working people across the country.
In this week’s GLC,Pierre Habbard gives an analysis of the Action Plan on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) which was prepared by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). In a meeting held in November 2013 in St Petersburg, BEPS was then endorsed by the G20. Habbard argues that “The international cooperation on tax evasion has been on the G20 agenda since 2009 but tax avoidance is a fairly new topic for the G20. Unlike tax evasion – which is illegal – tax avoidance is in the grey area of compliance.”
In this week’s GLC,Pierre Habbard gives an analysis of the Action Plan on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) which was prepared by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). In a meeting held in November 2013 in St Petersburg, BEPS was then endorsed by the G20. Habbard argues that “The international cooperation on tax evasion has been on the G20 agenda since 2009 but tax avoidance is a fairly new topic for the G20. Unlike tax evasion – which is illegal – tax avoidance is in the grey area of compliance.”
Habbard argues that the subject of taxation is an intricate matter that requires vigilance thus trade unions need to be familiar with the taxation laws. “Tax avoidance harms government finance and the right to public services through the net loss in tax revenues. But it also directly affects workers’ rights... for example, illicit transfer pricing typically reduces profit levels in subsidiaries that are employment intensive.”
Pierre Habbard is a senior policy adviser to the Trade Union Advisory Committee to the OECD (TUAC) and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) covering pension fund regulation, tax, corporate governance, financial regulation and public governance.
The TASC Annual Lecture is a major event in TASC’s calendar. In the past we have had international speakers such as economist James Galbraith, and closer to home Kathleen Lynch and Peter McVerry, each of whom has shone a light on a particular aspect of economic inequality.
Building on Thomas Piketty's keynote address to the TASC Annual Conference in June, this year's TASC Annual Lecture will be delivered by Brian Nolan, a distinguished academic and Ireland's foremost expert on income inequality and its societal impacts.
The TASC Annual Lecture is a major event in TASC’s calendar. In the past we have had international speakers such as economist James Galbraith, and closer to home Kathleen Lynch and Peter McVerry, each of whom has shone a light on a particular aspect of economic inequality.
Building on Thomas Piketty's keynote address to the TASC Annual Conference in June, this year's TASC Annual Lecture will be delivered by Brian Nolan, a distinguished academic and Ireland's foremost expert on income inequality and its societal impacts.
Brian Nolan took up the roles of Director of the Employment, Equity and Growth Programme at INET Oxford and Professor of Social Policy at Oxford in September 2014. He was previously Principal of the College of Human Sciences at University College Dublin. His recent books with Oxford University Press include The Handbook of Economic Inequality (2011) co-edited with W. Salverda and T.Smeeding and The Great Recession and the Distribution of Household Income (2013) co-edited with S. Jenkins, A. Brandolini and J. Micklewright.
The lecture will take place on Thursday, 20th November, in the Royal College of Physicians at No. 6 Kildare Street. Doors will open at 6 pm, and we would ask people to be seated by 6.30 p.m. Although there is no admission fee for this event, we will be seeking donations on the night to help defray costs.
In order to register for this event, please email sbyrne@tasc.ie
You are invited to attend a Commemoration Event for:
Pat Burke 1897 - 1987
volunteer in the International Brigades from Achill, who fought in the Spanish Civil War to defend the Spanish Republic against Fascism
1.00 p.m., Sunday, 16th November, 2014 Slievemore Graveyard, Keel, Achill Island, County Mayo, Ireland.
Exhibition and refreshments afterwards at Gielty’s bar, Dooagh, Achill.
The commemoration event will take place outdoors in the Slievemore Graveyard. Access is across uneven ground - please dress appropriately for an outdoor event in mid-November.
Refreshments will be available afterwards in Gielty’s bar, where there will also be an exhibiton with items from Pat’s life and information on the Irish volunteers in the Spanish Civil War. RSVP: noah@noahrose.co.uk
Directions: To find Slievemore Graveyard, from the R319 in Keel village, take the Slievemore Road (signed to Achill I.T. Centre). Drive past the I.T centre until the road forks left at the sign for Sean Reilig/The Deserted Village. Follow this road for about 300m and the graveyard is on the left.
In addition there will also be an earlier commemoration event for:
Tommy Patten, killed in action, Madrid, 1936 11.30 on Sunday 16th November 2014, at the Tommy Patten Memorial, Dooega, Achill
organised by Friends of the International Brigades, Ireland, with speaker Manus O’Riordan, Ireland Secretary, International Brigades Memorial Trust.
For more information on accommodation on Achill please click here
For more information and directions to Gielty’s bar, please visit click here
Join Siobhán ODonoghue of the Migrants Rights Centre of Ireland in a discussion with Jane McAlevey about her book, Raising Expectations (and Raising Hell). In her book, McAlevey describes her experiences in the labour movement organising bold, large scale campaigns in ‘Right to Work Nevada’ and elsewhere in the U.S., rebuilding the labour movement into a winning movement.
Join Siobhán ODonoghue of the Migrants Rights Centre of Ireland in a discussion with Jane McAlevey about her book, Raising Expectations (and Raising Hell). In her book, McAlevey describes her experiences in the labour movement organising bold, large scale campaigns in ‘Right to Work Nevada’ and elsewhere in the U.S., rebuilding the labour movement into a winning movement.
McAlevey's experiences organising in the student, environmental justice and union movement reflect her central belief that meaningful change can only come with whole-worker organising" that puts ordinary people at the center of their own struggle, in their workplaces and in their communities.
7.00 p.m., 17th November 2014, Thomas Davis Lecture Theatre
Organised by the Department of Sociology in association with Mandate Trade Union, Communication Workers Union and IBOA The Finance Union
More than 350 human rights groups, trade unions and political parties from across Europe - including 16 from Ireland - have called for the EU to hold Israel accountable for its massacre of Gaza earlier this year by suspending the EU-Israel Association Agreement, the main treaty between the EU and Israel. (See the full list of signatories by clicking here)
More than 350 human rights groups, trade unions and political parties from across Europe - including 16 from Ireland - have called for the EU to hold Israel accountable for its massacre of Gaza earlier this year by suspending the EU-Israel Association Agreement, the main treaty between the EU and Israel. (See the full list of signatories by clicking here) “Through the continued existence of the EU-Israel Association Agreement and the strengthening of the bilateral relations, the European Union and its member states are sending Israel the message that it does not have to abide by international law,” explains the declaration, which has been jointly issued by major civil society bodies from across 19 countries.
The written statement calling for the suspension of the agreement was delivered this morning to the Middle East advisors for Federica Mogherini, the new EU foreign policy chief who begins her new role this week and will make her first trip overseas to Palestine/Israel.
Irish signatories to the statement include the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, and trade unions SIPTU, Mandate, the Communications Workers' Union and the TEEU, along with NGOs such as Trocaire, the Hope Foundation, the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Gaza Action Ireland, the Irish Anti War Movement, Sadaka and Academics for Palestine. Internationally it has been endorsed by trade unions in Spain, France, Belgium and political parties including Podemos, who currently top the Spanish polls, and major NGOs including CNCD in Belgium.
The EU-Israel Association Agreement is the main framework for the close relationship between the EU and Israel, granting Israel preferential access to European markets and allowing it to participate in more EU programs and projects than any other non-European country.
The appeal for action condemns Israel’s deliberate targeting of civilians during its recent attack on Gaza that killed more than 2,000 Palestinians and argues that the failure of the EU to take tough action against Israel “contributes to the climate of impunity and lack of accountability”.
“The EU is providing material support to Israel’s violations of international law and failing to uphold its own commitments under international law,” the statement adds.
The EU has previously suspended its Association Agreement with Sri Lanka and recently introduced a raft of measures restricting trade and investment against Russia in relation to the Ukraine crisis.
The failure to impose similar measures on Israel despite decades of serious violations of international law amounts to a double standard, campaigners say.
The statement also argues that the Israel’s largely unrestricted access to European markets and participation in EU programs amounts to “material support to Israel’s violations of international law”.
Aneta Jerska, the coordinator of the European Coordination of Committees and Associations for Palestine (ECCP), one of the organisations that has signed the statement, said:
“The huge number of mainstream organisations that are calling for the suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement reflects the growing frustration across Europe with the failure of European governments to respond to Israel’s repeated massacres and violations of international law.”
“The EU has long argued that its close relations with Israel put it in strong position to engage in dialogue with Israel regarding its oppression of Palestinians, but Israel’s brutal massacre of Gaza shows that this dialogue has failed. It is time for the EU to take action that will pressure Israel to comply with international law.”
The ECCP has launched www.freepalestine.eu, an online platform that encourages people to contact members of the European parliament about the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
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