Fórsa has today (23rd March) received an assurance from the Department of Education and Skills (DES) that special needs assistants (SNAs) will not be temporarily redeployed to clerical posts in the HSE or social welfare.

But they may be reassigned to other posts as a result of the coronavirus emergency. This is most likely to be Covid-19 contact tracing, which can be done remotely.

Schools, which are currently closed, are being asked to identify staff including teachers and SNAs who are now available to work in other areas during the crisis. The education department may also reassign some SNAs to other roles that commensurate with their existing duties.

An official departmental communication is expected later this week.

New arrangements for a public service-wide mobilisation to tackle the Covid-19 virus and maintain essential public services, were outlined by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform last week. They allow for the temporary transfer of staff to critical roles for up to three months.

The measures also confirm that HSE-recommended social distancing will be observed in work settings, and that transferred staff will receive necessary training and upskilling. Transferred staff may be able to continue to work from their present location, and there is also be potential for remote working where this is practical.

Staff who take on temporary roles will continue to be employed, and paid by, their existing employer. And they will return to their existing employer and role once the temporary transfer is over.

Throughout the crisis, Fórsa has strongly urged members to volunteer for temporary critical assignments if they are able to do so – and to co-operate with requirements arising from such redeployments.

Fórsa’s head of education, Andy Pike, said he was awaiting precise details of the proposals for school-based staff.

“SNAs and other school-based workers will be treated in the same was as other redeployed public servants. They will be able to work remotely wherever possible. Those who are self-isolating or on sick leave will not be affected. Nor will staff with underlying health conditions,” he said.

It is not yet known how many SNAs will be required for other roles, but it’s expected that the Government will identify a pool of staff who can be called on if needed.

I wanted to take this opportunity to address you directly as a member of Fórsa trade union at this time of crisis for all citizens.

The events of the last two weeks are without precedent, and are an understandable source of anxiety for our members and their families. With so many of our members working in public services they are, in lots of different ways, at the very coal face of the response to Covid-19.

Similarly, our members in the community and voluntary sector, the aviation industry and a wide range of state bodies have been affected in different ways by the developments.

What binds us together on this occasion is the role each of us play in the collective response to the Covid-19 virus. That means following the guidelines on keeping our distance from one another, hand hygiene and self-isolating if we are feeling unwell.

We are bound together also by membership of this union with 80,000 other members. The foundations of the trade union movement were built upon workers standing together, shoulder to shoulder, ready to defend their interests and protect each other.

Now, more than ever, those foundations serve us well as we face into the crisis created by Covid-19. Already, our members nationwide have shown responsibility and resilience, characterised by the large numbers of you who’ve sought to volunteer to get involved with the response effort. That generosity of spirit and determination is a source of pride for all your union colleagues.

Fórsa and its members across the civil, public, private, voluntary and semi-state sectors remain committed to cooperating fully with emergency measures necessary to contain the Covid-19 coronavirus, protect the health and safety of citizens and workers, and maintain essential services during this unprecedented public health emergency.

Some of the measures necessary at this extraordinary time might not be acceptable in normal times. Fórsa has said that, so long as employers consult with the appropriate unions, respect existing collective agreements, and reach agreement with the union if they feel it necessary to waive aspects of collective agreements in the short-term, we can work together on the response to Covid-19 in a spirit of mutual trust and respect.

We are still in the early stages of this crisis, and the full effect on our society, on the economy, on jobs and incomes are not yet fully known. But the scale of job losses last week gives us a strong sense of its severity. Because of this, unions have called on the Government to dig deep to provide income supports and other emergency economic measures  to protect jobs and incomes.

We continue also to talk to employers in health, local government, civil service and education about plans for temporary reassignment and the measures necessary to keep those workers safe.

Above all, I want you to know that your union is here for you throughout this crisis. We’re here to answer your questions, protect you at work and fight for the necessary supports to ensure you and your family can recover from the impact of this crisis.

As a union and as a society, we will not be defined by this crisis but rather by our response to it. And the response of our members so far has been phenomenal, and fills me with optimism for what we can achieve beyond this point in time.

Your union is proud to stand with you at this time. Know that you do not stand alone.

If you have a question for the union on any of these issues, please contact us. Your welfare is our priority and Fórsa staff stand ready to answer your questions.

Stay safe and let’s face this challenge together.

In solidarity

Kevin

Fórsa has called on employers across the economy to ensure that social distancing is maintained to the greatest possible extent in workplaces, including those where customers and clients must be present to access services.

The union says staff in a number of public and private sector settings have raised concerns about the implementation of adequate social distancing measures, despite HSE appeals for caution in workplaces and elsewhere.

Social distancing has been identified as essential to slow the spread of the Covid-19 virus. The HSE guidelines recommend steps like maintaining a distance of at least two metres between people, refraining from hand-shaking and other forms of close contact, avoiding crowded places, and working from home wherever possible.

In advice to public service employers, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER) also points out that, by law, employers must ensure their employees’ health and safety “as far as is reasonably practicable.” 

It urges public service organisations to provide staff with advice on social distancing and encourage them to act to minimise risk. It also recommends the use of remote working, staggered shifts and flexible working hours where possible.

Fórsa has also called for protective equipment to underpin safety in settings where the highest degree of social distancing may not be possible at all times. The union says all employers should provide information to staff and service users, and enforce social distancing measures to the greatest possible extent.

Senior Fórsa officials are in constant liaison with management to ensure that appropriate protective and containment measures are in place.

In its advice to members, the union says: “Members are strongly advised to co-operate with management in its efforts to contain the Covid-19 coronavirus, protect the health and safety of citizens and workers, and maintain essential services – including when this means doing different things, in different ways, at different times.” 

If you have followed Fórsa/DPER advice and are still encountering problems with your line manager or HR department, you should contact the union HERE.

Non-critical clerical, administrative, professional and library staff may be temporarily redeployed to deal with an increased demand in other parts of the public service during the coronavirus crisis. This could include staff in institutes of technology, TU Dublin, Mary Immaculate College and education and training boards.

New arrangements for a public service-wide mobilisation to tackle the Covid-19 virus and maintain essential public services, were outlined by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER) last week. They allow for the temporary transfer of staff to critical roles for up to three months.

The education department will ask employers in the sector to identify staff not deemed essential at this time. They will be asked to complete a questionnaire by the Public Appointments Service (PAS) detailing their work experience, qualifications and skills. The PAS may then match staff to other areas on a temporary basis.

Fórsa’s head of education Andy Pike said, “Additional workers are needed for clerical posts in social protection and back-office positions in the HSE. People may also be asked to assist with Covid-19 contact tracing.”

The DPER measures confirmed that HSE-recommended social distancing will be observed in work settings, and that transferred staff will receive necessary training and upskilling. Transferred staff may be able to continue to work from their present location, and there is also be potential for remote working where this is practical.

Staff who take on temporary roles will continue to be employed, and paid by, their existing employer. And they will return to their existing employer and role once the temporary transfer is over.

Throughout the crisis, Fórsa has strongly urged members to volunteer for temporary critical assignments if they are able to do so – and to co-operate with requirements arising from such redeployments.

Andy assured members that they will be able to work remotely wherever possible. “Staff who are self-isolating or on sick leave will not be affected, nor will those with underlying health conditions. People with childcare or other caring commitments may also be asked to work from home,” he said.

A DES circular on temporary reassignment covering all grades is expected by the end of the week.

Weekend newspaper reports suggested that the Government was considering a generous wage-subsidy scheme – similar to that introduced in Denmark – to assist workers at risk of lay-offs on foot of the coronavirus.

The Sunday Times reported that that State was “set to pay 75% lf wages for virus-hit jobs.”

The Danish scheme reimburses companies 75% of the wages of staff who would otherwise be laid off, up to a cap of around €3,000 a month. It applies to private firms that face more than 50 job losses or redundancies of up to 30% of the workforce.

Last week, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) called on the Government to vastly improve income supports for tens of thousands of workers threatened with laid-offs because of the coronavirus crisis. 

Although measures have been put in place to speed-up welfare payments, those who lose their jobs face a huge drop in income as Jobseekers’ benefit is set at just €203 a week.

ICTU cited the Danish scheme while demanding much more ambitious measures from the Government to preserve workers’ jobs and incomes. In a letter to Leo Varadkar, its general secretary Patricia King said this level of shock unemployment would match the total number of jobs lost in over two years following the 2008 financial crash.

The union-backed Nevin Economic Research Institute has also called for massively increased income supports.

Around 90,000 applications have been received for the government's Covid-19 pandemic unemployment support payment so far. At least tens of thousands more are expected.

Minister for Social Protection Regina Doherty recently acknowledged that the €203 emergency payment is not enough. She said new measures will be announced in the coming days to help those who have lost their jobs as a result of the virus.

A new blog post from the union-backed Nevin Economic Research Institute (NERI) says the Government should put up billions in income supports and other emergency economic measures in response to the Covid-19 crisis.

The blog - by NERI co-directors Dr Tom McDonnell and Paul Mac Flynn - highlights the impact of sudden mass unemployment and argues that the long-term impact of this crisis will depend on actions the State takes now.

"The Covid-19 crisis is causing an economy-wide crisis that will require billions in emergency support from government. The immediate economic priority should be to prevent large-scale job losses and a destruction of the economy’s productive capacity.

“Achieving this goal will necessitate large-scale supports for small businesses and manufacturers to cover their wages and maintenance costs for the periods when they are shut down due to Covid-19,” writes McDonnell.

NERI recommends short-time work schemes to preserve jobs and skills for firms experiencing depressed demand: “Such a scheme would allow for reduction of working hours while supporting the income of the workers. These schemes proved effective in Germany and other countries during the 2008 crisis.”

For firms who face closure, NERI says direct government grants of sufficient scale, in addition to a postponement of tax obligations, should be available to all businesses that commit to decent work and to retaining their workforce. They also say zero interest loans should be made available to tide over businesses and households with cash flow problems.

Post-emergency

Once we get past the emergency phase of the Covid-19 crisis, NERI says debts owed by businesses and households to their respective governments, who can show permanent loss of income due to Covid-19 related shutdowns, should be cancelled: “This would help deal with certain payments such as mortgage, rent, utility and insurance without causing knock-on problems for other householders and businesses that would arise from postponements or cancellations of these payments.”

Social dialogue

NERI says almost all policy responses to date have emphasised the need to retain the connection between employers and employees: “We have the potential to make a rapid recovery from this crisis, but it is dependent on keeping as much of our economic infrastructure in place as possible.”

In Denmark government and employers agreed to 75-25 split in wage support for employees in impacted sectors while France has suspended rental payments, easing the burden on household incomes.

NERI further recommends that representatives of employers, employees and government should come together to work out the appropriate firm and sector specific details. This level of tripartite cooperation hasn’t been seen in Ireland since the collapse of social partnership in 2009. Long before the Covid-19 crisis struck the country, Fórsa’s General Secretary Kevin Callinan has been pressing the case for substantial social dialogue, and repeated that call over the weekend.

The employer’s body IBEC has also been strongly advocating a new social dialogue model in recent months.

Read the full NERI blog HERE. 

Fórsa is keen to ensure that all our members contact details are up to date.

By maintaining your current contact details we can ensure that up-to-the-minute, important information can be delivered directly to each and every member of the union.

This is especially important during the current national Covid-19 crisis. In the past few days we’ve been able to issue a series of special bulletins to members, keeping them in touch with the latest advice and guidelines from the HSE and employers.

However, if any member isn’t receiving this information, it means we don’t have a current email address for them on our system. This could be because they’ve moved departments or changed grades or employment etc.

If this sounds like the experience of one of your colleagues, please share this information with them and let them know we’re encouraging members to update their contact details with us in order to improve our communications service to members.

The union is also experiencing a high volume of members getting in touch with the communications unit directly to change their contact details as a result of new eircom policy taking effect later this month. Those members wishing to change the email address Fórsa contacts them on should also follow the directions outlined below.

It's also worth noting your home email address helps to ensure direct, safe and more effective communications with you than a workplace email address.

To update contact details, visit our website HERE and follow the directions to quickly update them.

Fórsa is here to protect you if you have problems arising from the coronavirus or other workplace issues. The best way to contact the union at this time is HERE.

We will deal with queries as quickly as we can but, needless to say, the union will prioritise cases where members’ jobs and incomes are at immediate risk – as well as any serious health and safety issues that may arise.

Fórsa has cancelled all face-to-face meetings for the time being. The union is redeploying its staff to prioritise engagement with management on proposals arising from the Covid-19 public health crisis, and to provide rapid and efficient responses to members’ queries and concerns.

Fórsa's main phone line (01 817 1500) is now open from 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday. Alternatively members can use the Contact Us page on the Fórsa website to submit queries directly to the relevant division within Fórsa and this remains the most efficient way to access advice directly.

Wherever possible, Fórsa staff have been equipped to work remotely. Therefore, members should not attend Fórsa offices at this time. If you have a query or concern, the best way to raise it is to contact the union HERE.