Fórsa and SIPTU met yesterday (6^th November) to agree next steps in their campaign for Community Employment (CE) supervisors after the Government reneged on a commitment to present proposals present proposals to address the non-implementation of a 2008 Labour Court recommendation.

Fórsa official Ian McDonnell said the unions had agreed on a campaign of lobbying and campaigning, targeted at TDs, ministers and the Taoiseach in the coming weeks.

The unions had been expecting a written proposal about CE supervisor issues from the Department of Employment and Social Protection last month, following a series of direct talks. But the department failed to meet its commitment.

Earlier this year, CE supervisors suspended proposed strike action after the department agreed to enter into a talks process aimed at resolving the long-running dispute. A one-day strike by CE supervisors and assistant supervisors took place in February.

Fórsa and other unions are in discussions with Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) management on three important matters, with talks expected to run into the New Year, according to official Johnny Fox.

Negotiations are underway on a new collective agreement to replace the current deal, which expires at the end of 2019. The union is working towards a comprehensive five-year agreement covering pay and working conditions.

According to Johnny, the unusual length of the proposed agreement is down to the need to align with the five-year European regulatory cycle, in which the European Commission effectively determines the budgets from which pay and other expenditure comes.

Separately, the union is in talks on six pension issues that are in dispute, including Fórsa’s claim to replace a hybrid pension scheme introduced by IAA management without agreement. Unions are also seeking the restoration of annual pension increases and the implementation of EU regulations on the recoupment of pension costs.

These issues have been referred to the company’s three-person internal dispute resolution board, which includes former IMPACT general secretary Peter McLoone.

Finally, discussions are also in train on an industrial relations agreement for staff in the new aviation regulatory body which, under Government proposals, is to be established by an amalgamation of the IAA’s regulatory functions with the Commission for Aviation Regulation.

Unions want to ensure there is no disimprovement in pay and conditions when the switch occurs. The union understands that legislation to establish the new regulatory body is now unlikely to be in place by the Government’s target deadline of January 2020.

The long-awaited auto-enrolment pension system is to be introduced on a phased basis from 2022, according to a recent announcement from the Department of Employment Social Affairs.

Under the new arrangement, all workers will be automatically enrolled in an occupational pension scheme – with contributions from their employer and the State, as well as the employee – when they start a job.

The scheme will apply to all employees aged between 23 and 60 earning more than €20,000 a year who are not already in a workplace pension scheme.

Under the scheme, workers will start paying contributions equal to 1.5% of salary, rising to 6% of salary in their tenth year of employment. Employers will be compelled to make matching contributions.

The level of Government contribution has yet to be finalised.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions’ (ICTU) social policy officer Laura Bambrick, who has given a broad welcome to the scheme, told RTÉ’s Today at Sean O’Rourke programme that the scheme had been discussed for nearly two decades. “Less than half of all workers have a pension, and in the private sector less than one in three workers have a pension”, she said.

Listen to Laura on RTÉ HERE.

Read the Congress guide to auto-enrolment HERE.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has teamed up with the National Women’s Council of Ireland (NWCI) to jointly demand that the Government commits to passing the Gender Pay Gap Information Bill before Christmas. The legislation has effectively stalled, making no progress since before the Dáil’s summer recess.

The bill would compel employers to report on the gender pay gap – the difference in the average pay of male and female staff – in their organisations. It would also require reporting on differences in bonus pay, part-time pay and the pay of men and women on temporary contracts.

Fórsa has been at the forefront of the trade union campaign for legislation on gender pay gap reporting, which it says would encourage employers into tangible action to bridge the gap. The union has criticised the slow pace of the legislative process.

NWCI director Orla O’Connor said the proposed legislation would properly shine a spotlight on organisations’ pay imbalance for the first time.

“The gender pay gap of 13.9% in Ireland has serious implications for a woman’s lifetime earnings,  her life and career decisions and her ability to live in older years with a decent income. The experience from other countries shows that harder measures are needed to combat pay inequality.

“While this legislation in and of itself will not close the gender pay gap, it is an extremely important step and one which needs to be implemented with haste,” she said.

David Joyce of ICTU believes that the bill can also advance Ireland’s commitment to the United Nation’s sustainable development goals.

“Government appointed both Congress and the NWCI to be sustainable development goal champion organisations. Goal five concerns achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls, while goal eight commits to decent work for all. Therefore, we will continue to campaign for decent work and equality for all women and men in Ireland and beyond,” he said.

Fórsa has postponed its forthcoming global solidarity school after its main speakers pulled out to work in the snap UK general election. Trade Union Congress (TUC) chief Frances O’Grady and Tony Lloyd, the Labour shadow secretary for Northern Ireland, who were scheduled to speak on Brexit, will instead be on the campaign trail.

Organisers say the event, originally scheduled for 15th and 16th November, will now take place early in the New Year. “For understandable reasons, our key speakers became unavailable at very short notice and it simply wasn’t possible to replace them with experts of a similar calibre in time for the event to go ahead. We’ll soon be announcing dates for the event early in 2020, with an excellent programme of speakers,” said one.

Trade unions have welcomed the launch of a workplace menopause policy by British TV station Channel 4. The initiative aims to support staff who experience the sometimes-debilitating side effects of the condition.

The development comes amid a growing recognition, among unions and HR specialists, of the need for employers to accommodate women who are dealing with menopause.

Recent research by the Welsh Trade Union Congress (TUC) indicates that many women feel their managers don’t recognise the problems associated with the condition, which can be exacerbated by ignorance and misunderstanding.

It found that many women find that inflexible working arrangements make it difficult to deal with problematic symptoms. This can result in increased sick leave or women cutting their working hours, which can mean missed training and promotional opportunities and a widening gender pay gap.

The Channel 4 policy aims to create a flexible working environment to help workers manage symptoms, while also destigmatising and normalising the subject.

Roughly a third of women have either experienced menopause or are currently going through it. Approximately 80% of women will experience noticeable symptoms. While some women will cope well with the physical and emotional changes, almost half find the symptoms difficult to deal with.

Fórsa Equality Officer Geraldine O’Brien said the Channel 4 move was progressive, and should be an example to other employers. “Unions are at the forefront of the fight for equality, working hard to ensure that working women have supports in place to remain healthy and safe in the workplace,” she said.

For more information on the Wales TUC survey click HERE.

Fórsa youth network will host this year’s Fórsa Quiz Night in Dublin on 12^th December and the proceeds will go to Transgender Equality Network Ireland (TENI), a non-profit organisation supporting the trans community in Ireland.

The quiz commences at 5.30pm and costs €100 for a table of four. The youth network has asked branches to either take a table or donate €100 to support this worthy cause.

You can get further details HERE. 

To register a table, contact the youth committee here or send cheques (made out to the Transgender Equality Network Ireland) to Michael Kerrigan, Fórsa, Nerney’s Court, Dublin DO1 R2C5.