Water, Collective Bargaining, Ireland

A nationwide strike on 7 June by SIPTU members in local authority water services was averted following the decision by the government to guarantee that any workers who do not want to transfer to the new public water company, Uisce Éireann, will have all their earnings protected. The key issue for the union was to secure the guarantee in relation to workers’ allowances and overtime payments they accrue currently as part of their work. Meanwhile, INMO and other health unions have called for the extension of the temporary special leave with pay scheme for workers with COVID to be extended. The

The SIPTU trade union has announced dates for industrial action by water workers and retained (part-time) firefighters in June. Water workers currently employed by local authorities face restructuring as a new national water company is established. The dispute is over the failure of local authorities to guarantee the protection of all pay and conditions if the workers choose to remain with their local authority. The firefighters’ action is over pay and the serious staff shortages in the sector which are putting extra pressure on existing staff who often forego holidays in order to ensure cover

In three separate disputes, members of the Fórsa and SIPTU trade unions have voted in favour of industrial action. In the ambulance service, SIPTU members voted with a 95% majority to back industrial action following the refusal of management to implement a restructuring plan that had been negotiated with and was fully supported by the union. Meanwhile, SIPTU members in the water sector will take strike action on 7 June unless there is a guarantee that their local authority pay and conditions will be protected when they transfer to a new employer, Uisce Éireann, a new standalone public utility

Public service trade unions, including Fórsa, SIPTU and INMO, have agreed to launch a campaign on pay that could involve industrial action. The unions, coordinated by the ICTU confederation, had already called on the government to review pay in the light of the surge in inflation. However, the response was only for an additional 2.5% increase in 2021-22 when inflation has already topped 9%. The unions argue that by failing to complete the pay review in light of higher inflation, the government is failing to meet the requirements of the public service collective agreement, Building momentum

The Fórsa public services trade union has published a new report to support its call on the government to “harness the productive power of sectoral bargaining” which it argues will improve wage levels and pay equality. The report puts Ireland near the bottom of the scale on worker representation and participation in economic decision-making and argues that collective bargaining can deliver benefits to both workers and employers, while underpinning better outcomes for society and the economy as a whole. The report would contribute to the work of the high-level working group which is examining

The government has put forward a proposal to set up a joint labour committee (JLC) that would determine minimum pay and working conditions for the childcare sector. Currently there is no sector bargaining covering childcare workers and unions have been campaigning for years to tackle low pay and precarious employment. JLCs are independent bodies that exist in sectors like security and cleaning where there is no sector bargaining. They issue employment regulation orders (ERO) setting minimum pay rates and conditions. SIPTU says that a JLC would provide an opportunity for the union and the IBEC

The Forsa public services union is arguing that the current public sector agreement needs to address cost-of-living increases and occupation and grade-specific claims. Recent pay rises have brought pay back to 2008 levels but don't take account of the 6% rise in prices while there is a range of demands from different groups of workers that have not been addressed in earlier negotiations. This is reflected in the current dispute involving nurses and midwives which is now being addressed in the Labour Court. The Court had ruled earlier in favour of a pay rise for nurses and midwives and other

The INMO nurses' and midwives' union has announced a first day of strike action on 30 January with the possibility that five further 24-hour strikes will follow in February if the dispute over pay and recruitment is not resolved. In the meantime the SIPTU services union is calling the Health and Safety Executive to look at health sector pay in the context of the public sector pay deal and the Forsa public services union reports on the impact of the current pay deal which is delivering lower pension payments for some workers and a 1% pay increase for the lower paid

Following votes across all the public sector unions, a majority (14), accounting for 80% by membership supported the new agreement on pay and conditions with three voting against. The three-year deal includes six pay increases (two targeted at the lower paid only) and will mean that the majority of public sector workers (73%) will see an overall increase of 7% by the end of the agreement. There is a range of other conditions that have been confirmed as part of the deal including the retention of outsourcing protections, the option to negotiate on returning to a shorter working week and

Public service unions bargaining for better pay across EuropeA pay rise for public service workers across Europe is the message that EPSU has sent out today – 23rd June – Public Services Day. Supported by the European Trade Union Confederation and in cooperation with the ETUCE teachers' federation, EPSU has highlighted some of the countries where public service workers continue to suffer from the effects of pay cuts and pay freezes.This special issue of EPSU's Collective Bargaining newsletter reports on some of the latest developments in pay negotiations and affiliates' campaigns, protests and