SIPTU President Jack O’Connor has said that workers in the public service would be better served by one centralised agreement with the Government on pay and conditions.

Responding to media reports of so-called ‘sweeteners’ on offer to members of some unions if they agree to the Labour Relations Commission proposals on a new Public Service Agreement, O’Connor, said: “I don’t think anyone should get better deals than anyone else. "I'm not sure the proposals, as they stand, are adequate. But I am sure that everyone who works in the public service is better off with an agreement which protects them against redundancy, which protects them against the outsourcing of their jobs.

"That's why I supported the Croke Park Agreement (in 2010) when it was going down in flames."

SIPTU General President, Jack O’Connor, has expressed his deep regret at the tragic death of the Venezuelan president, Hugo Chavez.

“I want to express my deep regret at the death of Hugo Chavez whose passing is a tragedy for the Venezuelan people and the oppressed and downtrodden of Latin America and the wider world.”

SIPTU Community workers have launched a new campaign to defend vital services from government plans to cut, outsource and close key parts of the sector.

SIPTU Sector Organiser Darragh O’Connor explained: “Plans announced by the Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan will dismantle existing structures for key community services. 'Our Communities First' campaign has been established in response to these proposals to defend thousands of workers who now face an uncertain future.”

Several hundred people attended a rally at the Central Bank, Dublin, on Monday (4th March) calling on the Government to legislate for the X case before the summer.

SIPTU was among 100 civil society organisations, trade unions, politicians and academics that supported the evening demonstration.

SIPTU school bus drivers in the Galway area have reached agreement with Bus Éireann, bringing an end to a dispute which had threatened to result in strike action.

SIPTU Transport Sector Organiser, Willie Noone, said: “Following meetings between union representatives and management, agreement was reached concerning issues relating to hours of work and pay.”

SIPTU representatives supported protests by workers at Roches Pharmacy, Gorey, Co. Wexford and Crowley's Pharmacy in Cork city.

Staff decided to protest outside the store to highlight their frustration with the management’s refusal to negotiate with their union, SIPTU. The protests took place in Gorey on Tuesday (5th March) and in Cork on Thursday (7th March).

By Siobhán Barron

For over 35 years it has been Government policy that at least 3% of those employed in the public service should be people with disabilities. The Disability Act 2005 put this employment target on a statutory basis.

The 3% target is a positive action measure to ensure that people with disabilities can get jobs, or stay in their jobs, in the public sector. This is against a backdrop where, even during the economic boom, people with disabilities were twice as likely to be out of work as the general population.

There is no doubt that the proposals for a revised agreement for workers in the public service represent a huge challenge for SIPTU members and the wider trade union movement.

Faced with a Troika insistence on securing a further €1billion reduction in public spending over the next three years, intense negotiations between unions and public service management have resulted in the latest set of proposals from the Labour Relations Commission.

Each union member will have an opportunity to vote on the proposals based on how they affect their pay and conditions of employment.

It is our view that workers in the public service are better served by one centralised agreement with the Government and by arrangements which protect them against redundancy and the outsourcing of their jobs.

By Roland Erne

While nominal labour unit costs in Germany rose by 5.9 %, and 8.1 % in the UK during the last three years, Irish labour unit costs fell by 12.2 % during the same period due to the imposition of wage cuts (especially in the public sector) and a significant increase of the productivity of Irish employees. Compared to the Irish, across the entire EU only Latvian workers faced a bigger labour unit cost losses (-15 %) according to official EU statistics (European Commission 2012: 24).    

The Social Inclusion Forum is part of the structures put in place by the Government to support the development and implementation of its plans to address poverty and social exclusion. The event provides a forum for wider public consultation and discussion on social inclusion issues, particularly with people experiencing poverty and social exclusion and the groups that work with them. SIF 2013 will take place on 26th March in Croke Park. To register please email social.inclusion@welfare.ie

This year we commemorate one of the longest and most wide spread industrial actions in the history of our island. At ten o’clock on the morning of August 26th 1913 the tram men who were members of the ITGWU walked off their trams and so began the infamous 1913 lockout.

One of the first groups to come out in support of the tram workers were the women who worked for Jacobs led by a young Rosie Hackett. This was not her first involvement in industrial action. In 1910, Rosie was one of several hundred women from the factory who went on strike and secured equal pay for women.

Energy Action’s European Conference on Tackling Fuel Poverty will be held in the Ballsbridge Hotel, Dublin, on March 11th and 12th.

EU Energy Action conference will pool information and experience to reduce Fuel Poverty in the coming year.

The conference has the theme of ‘Reframing Fuel Poverty in Europe’. It will focus primarily on addressing the health impact of the problem on low income groups and older people.

We are delighted to announce that Kerry Foods
have joined the Supporting Quality Campaign