The Fórsa Insights series is proud to present a special performance of Lisa Walsh's groundbreaking play Love In The Wild, following its successful run in Dublin theatres last Spring. This exclusive performance by Anto Seery will take place at the union's headquarters in Dublin on Thursday 13th September at 6pm.

Love In The Wild is a new play written by Lisa Walsh, and made its premiere at the Axis theatre in Ballymun earlier this year. Lisa is a member of Fórsa and is a social worker with Tusla. She is currently working in child protection having previously worked as a medical social worker and an addiction worker.

Fórsa Insights is a specially curated series of talks and cultural events open to Fórsa members, ICTU affiliates and NGOs. The aim is to explore a wide range of issues including human rights, climate change, migration, homelessness and the experience of campaigning for workers rights across the globe. 

“The play is a one-man show about a man called Ger Duffy. He’s from Ballymun on Dublin’s north side. He’s on a methadone programme and he’s journeying through addiction and through big changes in his life. He has a strong connection to wildlife and nature, which helps explain how he sees the world, a way that’s quite different to how most people see it. The play is about love, it’s about judgment but hopefully it’s also about redemption. He’s not the stereotype of an addict, there are many layers to Ger and many layers to his story.” - playwright Lisa Walsh.

This exclusive performance of Lisa Walsh's critically acclaimed play is free to Fórsa members. To book your seat, send an email to Fórsa Insights. 

Visit loveinthewild.ie 

Watch the Love In The Wild trailer here:

Fórsa’s ballot of members in library, professional management and support staff roles in the higher education sector has returned a vote of 85% of members balloted in favour of industrial action.

The ballot for industrial action, up to and including strike action, aims to secure a comprehensive job evaluation exercise for these members.

The purpose of job evaluation is to measure whether or not a specific post is correctly graded. It assesses the skills and responsibilities required of a particular post, rather than the individual performing it. Unions secured a commitment to the implementation of a job evaluation scheme under the Lansdowne Road Agreement in 2016.

Fórsa’s Education division has now appointed a disputes committee following the ballot result.

Further talks are expected to take place in August.

Fórsa has cautioned the Department of Education and Skills that this year’s allocation process for the school year starting in September has given rise to a ‘surprising’ number of cases where SNAs have been told their working hours are to be cut.

In a letter to the department in early July, deputy general secretary Kevin Callinan said this was despite the fact that the overall SNA allocation for schools is to be increased or to remain the same.

He said a similar pattern of post fragmentation gave rise to a dispute with the department in 2014 and 2015.

Kevin added: “This culminated in an agreed approach, the essence of which was that additional SNA hours in a school should be offered to part-time staff in order of seniority in the first instance.”

He said both parties acknowledged at the time that there could be a small number of exceptions, but that these were subject to specific provisions.

However, Kevin said that recent unsuccessful attempts to resolve individual cases had forced the union to conclude “there is no commitment on the part of the NCSE, and on the part of many schools, to the proper operation of the relevant circular both in letter and spirit.”

He said this contravened the national agreements that have operated since 2010, which included commitments in relation to employment and income security.

He added: “Fórsa believes that reductions in the income of our SNA members, other than on a voluntary basis, or in accordance with the specific provisions of a collective agreement, constitute a breach of the prevailing national agreement.

“Furthermore, Fórsa holds the Department of Education and Skills, as the authority that operates the SNA scheme including payments to staff, responsible for all losses to individual SNAs in such circumstances and will take all necessary steps and action to ensure the recovery of these losses.

“We will not accept a failure to make working time available as a justification for reducing individual rates of pay when the terms of the relevant circular have not been followed,” he said.

Kevin said the union remained ready to meet the department to examine outstanding individual cases and to discuss the appropriate remedial action.

Fórsa is due to meet with senior officials from the Department of Education and Skills in order to establish the status of the NCSE report on the SNA service, and to give the union’s preliminary views on the report’s recommendations.

In a letter to the department last month, Fórsa’s deputy general secretary Kevin Callinan said the union was increasingly concerned about confusion among schools and other stakeholders about the status of the review and its various recommendations.

Kevin said the union had been made aware of instances where schools have said they intend to implement some of the recommendations, including those to do with contractual terms of employment, in circumstances where there has been no discussion with the union or its members.

He added “Fórsa is keen to avoid any unnecessary confusion and disruption within the school system” and sought a meeting in order to establish the department’s plans for implementing the review’s recommendations.

In a reply to Fórsa, the department confirmed that work is underway to assess the costs associated with implementing any recommendations that may subsequently be approved by the Government.

The department confirmed that work is also underway on the development of a new model of resource allocation, as recommended by the NCSE, and said it expected the Minister will bring proposals to the Government in the coming months.

Responding to the department last week Kevin said, “At this stage what is required is a Departmental letter making the current status of the review clear to all stakeholders and outlining that the implementation of aspects of the review should not take place in advance of central direction from the Department.”

He said it would also be helpful for the department to advise that implementation would only follow the provision of information - and appropriate consultation - with the relevant staff interests, including Fórsa.

Preparations for a meeting with department officials are currently underway.

Fórsa’s School Secretaries branch is preparing a national campaign to improve secretaries’ pay next year.

Under the terms of a 2015 arbitration finding, the payment of four separate pay rises of 2.5 per cent for school secretaries and caretakers will be completed by 2019.

The branch plans to launch the campaign once these pay improvements have been completed.

Fórsa official Barry Cunningham explained that the planning for the campaign has gained momentum this year, following the union’s Education conference event in April.

“We’ve held a series of regional meetings over the previous 18 months which has seen the branch grow by 15%. We’ve established a working group for the campaign, including chairperson Maria Dunne and Kathleen O’Doherty from our Education executive. We plan to launch the campaign as the new school term 2018-19 gets underway,” he said.

Pay varies

Caretakers and secretaries pay rates vary, as they are determined by the individual board of management of each school, and paid from the ancillary grants paid to the schools by the Department of Education and Skills.

Almost all are paid below the scale paid to equivalent public service workers, including a minority of secretaries and caretakers who are paid directly by the department.

Unfairness

In a recent article in TheJournal.ie, long time Fórsa school secretary activist Kathleen O’Doherty compared the situation to the teachers’ equal pay dispute.

“It’s just the unfairness and disparity of it. Even when teachers talk about equal pay, they are coming in on a lower rate – but they still have their pay and conditions,” she told TheJournal.ie.

Kathleen had recently spoken to a school secretary who’d just been told that there was no work for her because the numbers of pupils at her school had dropped, while another was losing hours under similar circumstances.

“I understand the Department’s argument that pay rates are linked to the number of students, but three or four students less doesn’t make such a difference that it deserves a pay change,” she said.

Campaign

Fórsa, and one of its forerunner unions IMPACT, has championed the cause of pay parity for school secretaries over more than a decade.

Barry Cunningham explained that the 2015 arbitration finding was the first big breakthrough. “This was the first time that the urgent need for pay improvement was officially recognised in any way.

“Even after we won that battle, we were forced to take a number of school boards of management to task for not implementing the pay improvements that were due.

“Our School Secretary activists have been resilient, and have refused to back down on winning the recognition on pay parity that they deserve.

“Every school principal, every board of management and every parent who walks through the school gates knows just how invaluable their school secretary is to the life of the school. It’s way past time for the Department of Education and Skills to recognise that fact, and our campaign will bring that message to the Minister’s door,” he said.

Cathleen is a clerical officer in the Department of Education and a member of Fórsa’s Youth Committee.

In a compelling interview with journalist Brian Hutton, Cathleen described the experience of trying to make ends meet, and paying rent in Dublin, on a take home pay of €370 per week.

This works out at €9.86 per hour. That’s 31 cent more than the statutory minimum wage, and over €2 less than the living wage.

Cathleen left short-term contracts in US tech multinationals for “stability and security” in the civil service. She told the Irish Times: “People think civil servants are all earning this big money, on these great pensions. But that is not true for the vast majority of us.

“For every secretary general there are hundreds on lower ranks, earning considerably less. When I get a pension, it will really be a State pension with a small top-up.”

Delegates at Fórsa’s national conference in May passed a number of motions calling for the living wage to be established as the minimum entry point for public service workers.

Courage

Youth Committee chairperson Osal Kelly praised Cathleen for taking part in the interview. “It takes courage to speak so publicly about your personal experiences but Cathleen has done a great service in doing so and in showing in such relatable terms how difficult it is for public servants appointed on the lower starting points to make ends meet.

“It’s good to have articles like this to counter the misconceptions out there about public sector pay and pensions. As Cathleen points out, pensions are another area where there is huge inequality for younger public servants, and those of us who are new entrants will have a pension that is worth 25% less than the standard pension,” he said.

You can read Cathleen’s full interview here, which was published in the Irish Times on 16th July.

Related: Almost 1,000 civil servants paid less than living wage – The Irish Times (Monday 16th July).

Some 28% of people in Ireland believe they will never be able to own their own home, according to Aviva’s 2018 family finances report. The annual survey, which addresses a range of family finance issues, found that 40% of non-homeowners don’t expect to be able to buy a house for at least a decade.

The findings mirror a recent ICTU survey, which found that 74% of young workers believed they would not be able to buy a house in the future. The survey established that 68% of young Fórsa members were sceptical about their ability to buy a home in the future.

Difficulties raising a deposit and uncertainty about being able to afford a mortgage emerged as reasons for the lack of optimism about buying a home. Both issues are compounded by high rental costs and shortages in the housing market.

Ann O’Keeffe, head of personal pensions and investments with Aviva, said the report shows a change in long term home ownership patterns. “Home ownership has become a dearly held but distant aspiration rather than a plan,” she said.

A release accompanying the survey highlights a gender gap in personal finances apparent throughout the survey, with the number of women aged 25-44 living in rented accommodation 10% higher than men.

The survey also found 29% of respondents are struggling financially despite the upturn in the economy and growth in the labour market. The release said respondents were generally optimistic about job opportunities, but noted the numbers expecting a pay increase this year is down.

The report is available here, and you can find more information here and here.

A third one-day strike by directly-employed Ryanair pilots, members of the Irish Airline Pilots’ Association, is underway today (Tuesday). No meeting has taken place between Fórsa and company management since last Wednesday (18th July), even though the union told management last week that it was available for talks.

A number of flights between Ireland and the UK have been cancelled because of the strikes, which are placing a huge financial and operational burden on the company as its management tries to minimise the impact on its schedules.

The company cited industrial unrest as one of the factors behind a decision to cut prices this summer, after it reported a 20% drop in profits in the three months to the end of June.

Fórsa criticised airline management’s suggestion that it might also cut back on jobs and expansion plans in Ireland because of industrial action. “This kind of threatening statement is not conducive to building trust and reaching a resolution to the dispute, and Fórsa doesn’t accept that jobs or expansion in the airline need be put at risk by company management,” according to a spokesperson.

The pilots are seeking a fair and transparent method to govern base transfers and related matters. This is common practice in the industry.

At present, company management has total discretion on transfers, which can see pilots moved to bases thousands of miles from their homes and families. Most other airlines have a fair and transparent criteria, based on seniority, to govern pilot relocations.

The union and management have met twice in the last fortnight, for a total of about nine hours. These discussions found some common ground on the possibility of establishing a joint working group to thrash out the issues in dispute. But the parties couldn’t agree on terms of reference for such a group.

Fórsa has also repeatedly suggested that independent third-party facilitation could help the parties to reach consensus, but Ryanair management has so far rejected the suggestion.

Meanwhile, the disputes committee of the union’s Services and Enterprises Division is to meet again tomorrow (Wednesday) to consider further industrial action.

Legislation that will allow civil and public servants who are currently obliged to retire at age 65 to opt to stay in work for longer has been passed in the Seanad, but was not discussed in the Dáil before the summer recess got underway.

Fórsa expressed its disappointment at the delay after it had called on all the main political parties to enact the law quickly, to give public servants recruited before 1st April 2004 the option to retire up to age 70.

The new arrangement would benefit public servants who must currently retire at 65, but who depend on the state old age pension for part of their retirement income.

Significantly, the legislation would allow staff who stay in work beyond age 65 to continue to accrue pension benefits, subject to a ceiling of 40 years’ benefits.

The union wants quick enactment to resolve the plight of civil and public servants who are forced to retire at 65, but can’t get the state pension until they are 66.

The Public Service Stability Agreement, backed by members of the unions that created Fórsa earlier this year, enabled the union to address the problem in discussions with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER).

The union has also spoken to Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin and Labour about the need to pass the legislation as quickly as possible.

Pending the enactment of legislation, there are limited interim arrangements in place that allow public servants who want to stay in work until they are eligible for the state pension to be re-hired. However, they are placed on the first point of the non-pensionable pay scale, and can’t make further pension contributions.

Public servants recruited after 1st April 2004 are not covered by the new legislation because they already have either have no compulsory retirement age or the ability to retire up to age 70.

Contrary to some media reports at the end of last year, the law doesn’t introduce a compulsory retirement age of 70.

Income inequality has been stable in Ireland over the past 30 years, but we have moved closer to the international average because inequality has worsened elsewhere, according to a new report.

The Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) says Ireland is now close to the OECD average after being at the top end of the inequality spectrum 30 years ago.

Professor Tim Callan, one of the report’s authors, said redistribution through tax and welfare payments had been crucial to income growth for lower earners, offsetting continuing wage inequality in Ireland.

This analysis was echoed by Tom Healy of the union-backed Nevin Economic Research Institute (NERI), who said the report highlighted the disproportionate ‘heavy lifting’ done by the tax and welfare system.

“There is a need to acknowledge that inequality in gross market income is too wide and that a more socially sustainable approach is to boost wages and narrow income inequalities before taxes and benefits are applied,” he said.

Fórsa’s senior general secretary Shay Cody said public service trade union emphasis on lower paid workers had played a role in addressing income inequality.

“Unions pursued a strategy to include flat-rate pay adjustments, which give most benefit to the lowest paid workers, with two such adjustments in the Lansdowne Road Agreement,” he said.

Shay added the negotiation of average adjustments of over 7% under the current Public Service Stability Agreement built on those flat-rate adjustments and ensured lower-paid workers incomes rose in line with broader income growth.

Fewer than one in seven UK companies paid woman more than men on average last year, and there was no economic sector that paid women more. The figures were revealed at a seminar on tackling the gender pay gap, which took place at Leinster House earlier this month.

The results of the British data also found a large gap in bonus pay. One employer – the University of Liverpool – gave men 90% more in bonuses than its female staff received.

Emer Bucukolgu, manager and reward consultant at Innecto Reward Consulting, said new UK regulations on gender pay gap reporting, which apply to employers with more than 250 staff, leave “nowhere for companies to hide.”

She said media coverage had brought the issue to the forefront of public consciousness by naming and shaming organisations. This had forced management boards to tackle the issue.

Last month, Fórsa criticised the Government for stalling the introduction of similar legislation in Ireland.

The Leinster House briefing, which was organised by the new cross-party group on workplace equality in partnership with Dress for Success Dublin, attracted a large crowd including Fórsa reps.

Gender pay gap reporting in the UK is based on a single snapshot date, where organisations of 250 employees or more report the difference in the average hourly rate of men and women’s pay, including bonuses.

Hayley Barnard of MIX Diversity Developers spoke about how to close talent gaps within organisations, and said flexible working was a key driver in female recruitment.

She also debunked the perception that equality is a HR issue. “Equality begins in each person’s state of mind,” she said. “Therefore, it’s up to communications to emphasise the importance of women in the organisation.”

Flexi-time and flexi-leave is to be available to workers at Roscommon county council following a Fórsa campaign that culminated in four one-day strikes.

Management is now implementing a two-month flexi-leave trial following an agreement reached at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).

The agreement makes flexi-time and flexi-leave available to all workers up to grade VII, senior executive engineers and all analogous grades in the authority.

Fórsa official Padriag Mulligan, who led the campaign, said it was a significant victory for all local authority workers. “I salute the leadership by the elected officers of the Roscommon branch and the commitment that members gave when asked to take industrial action. This has resulted in a breakthrough in Roscommon, which will avert the danger of other councils seeking to undermine family-friendly practices,” he said.

The pilot scheme allows staff to access flexi-leave for the first time in almost a year. The dispute went to strike action after management had effectively banned flexi-leave and refused to reinstate it.

The long-running dispute saw seven WRC hearings, two binding Labour Court recommendations, two clarifications of the Labour Courts position and a clarification of its clarifications. All this before the final settlement in the WRC.

Strike action in Roscommon began on 21st June, and three other strike days took place. The Fórsa campaign also included a rally, which drew local members and Fórsa branches from across the country.

A statement from the National Oversight Body on the 2nd July proved a key intervention in the final week of strike action. The union suspended a planned fifth day of action when “a clear route to the full availability of flexi-leave” emerged.

The WRC agreement, which was finalised on 6th July, compels both sides to work together to formulate a new document to follow on from the pilot after its expiry in early September.

The national minimum wage looks set to increase by 25 cent following a submission by the Low Pay Commission to the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection Regina Doherty, last week. This would be less than the widely-criticised 30 cent rise recommended last year.

If accepted by Government, as expected, the minimum rate of hourly pay rise would rise from €9.55 to €9.80. But unions have said the minimum wage should be aligned with the higher non-statutory living wage instead.

Earlier this month the Living Wage Technical Group said the living wage should rise by 20 cent to €11.90 an hour. The living wage is a measure of the income needed to support a socially acceptable standard of living.

While the proposed increase in the national minimum wage is welcome, it still stands at €2.10 an hour less than the revised living wage.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has called on the Government to align the national minimum wage with the living wage as soon as possible. Its industrial officer Liam Berney commended the Commission for its work.

“Its proposed increase would narrow the gap between the living wage and the national minimum wage, albeit marginally. But the economy is roaring. We have the lowest annual inflation rate in the Euro area. Government should not shirk from this opportunity to make a positive impact on the living standards of our lowest paid workers. Decent wages are of fundamental importance to building a fair and inclusive society,” he said.

For more information on the living wage click here.

For more information on the national minimum wage click here.

Transgender people in Ireland suffer more hate crimes than anywhere else in Europe. If you are a trans person, or consider yourself an ally, you can join Fórsa this Saturday (28th July) at Ireland’s first ever Trans Pride march.

Trans Pride describes itself as “both a parade and a protest.” It aims to celebrate the lives and identity of trans people, while simultaneously fighting for trans rights, healthcare, bodily autonomy, and an end to transphobia in Ireland.

The march begins at 2pm on the 28th of July outside Liberty Hall in Dublin. The route will then proceed along Amiens Street and conclude in Fairview Park, where a rally will take place.

Trans Pride is demanding free trans healthcare based on informed consent, an end to intersex genital mutilation and legislation and recognition for non-binary people. As well as social housing funding and an end to direct provision. Click here for the full list.

If you wish to attend or are interested in the event, please contact gobrien@forsa.ie for more information.

Fórsa has said it’s surprised at last week’s announcement that the Government wants to establish Irish Water as a commercial state body. The union says the move is likely to fuel fears that the utility will be privatised in future.

The move was confirmed in a letter to unions earlier this week. The letter also confirmed the intention to establish Irish Water as a stand-alone company by separating it from its parent company Ervia.

The union has sought a meeting with senior departmental officials to ascertain the rationale behind the proposals, and any implications for local authority staff.

Fórsa official Peter Nolan said the proposal undermined discussions on the organisation of water services, including the relationship between Irish Water and local authorities, which are currently underway in the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).

“I am surprised and disturbed by this announcement, not least because we entered discussions on the basis that there was no predetermined outcome on the future structure of water services. We want water services under public control and operated by public service workers.

“The Government has provided no rationale as to why the board should be commercial, which means this move is bound to be viewed with suspicion by those who use and deliver water services,” he said.

Although the Government has supported Ervia’s proposal to create a single water utility by 2021 - four years before existing ‘service level agreements’ (SLAs) are due to expire – it has repeatedly assured unions that local authorities will maintain their major role in water provision until an alternative is agreed. SLAs govern the supply of services to Irish Water by local authorities.

Last month, Fórsa told the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government that SLAs should continue, and that local authority staff should not be forced to transfer to a new entity.

Unions also called for a referendum on the ownership of the public water system to take place this year. This followed a commitment from housing minister Eoghan Murphy that he would facilitate a referendum.