Articles A
Return to workplace must be safe
by Bernard Harbor
 

The Tánaiste has pledged that official coronavirus workplace safety guidelines will be updated in consultation with unions and employer representatives. 


The Tánaiste has pledged that official coronavirus workplace safety guidelines will be updated in consultation with unions and employer representatives. He was speaking to reporters after the Cabinet signed off on a comprehensive unwinding of Covid-19 restrictions, including a phased return to workplaces from 20th September.

 

Mr Varadkar also said he expected people to embrace ‘blended working,’ or a mix of remote work and workplace attendance.

 

Fórsa had earlier called for assurances that the phased return to workplaces would be safe. The union called on the Government and employer representatives to maintain consultation about a safe return to workplaces based on the health and safety measures set out in an agreed ‘Return to Work Safely Protocol.’

 

Earlier in the summer, the union held initial discussions with senior public service management on return-to-work arrangements. Engagements on a range of issues – including phasing and continued blended working – is now expected to intensify across all sectors.

 

The return-to-work safety protocol was agreed last summer under the auspices of the Labour-Employer Economic Forum (LEEF), the State’s most important forum for social dialogue on employment and labour market issues. It is made up of senior representatives of Government, workers and employers.

 

Subsequent revisions to the document have also been agreed with unions.

 

A Fórsa spokesperson said the protocol had worked well, and should continue to ensure that all working environments are safe and compliant with measures necessary to contain the virus and keep workers and others safe.

 

“The protocol’s requirement that employers consult with worker representatives will continue to be an important safeguard as individual employments plan a phased and safe return to the workplace,” they said.

 

The call was underlined by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), whose general secretary Patricia King said the top priority must be to ensure that workers are able to return to their workplace safely.

 

“Measures include adequate ventilation systems and access to fresh air to reduce risk where workers may be in close contact for long periods of time and working in poorly ventilated areas. The use of flexible and staggered work arrangements, including blended work models, will also be critical in ensuring compliance with health and safety measures,” she said.

 

Last week, King wrote to Taoiseach Micheál Martin on a range of Covid-related health and safety issues in the workplace and on public transport. She also reiterated the union view that full PUP payments should continue for workers in employments that are not yet fully operational because of ongoing public health restrictions.

 

Read the new official guidelines, called ‘'Reframing the challenge, continuing our recovery and reconnecting,’ HERE

 

It’s never been more important – or easier – to get the protections and benefits of union membership. Join Fórsa HERE or contact us HERE.

Time to build on pandemic remote work gains
by Bernard Harbor
 

The proposed phased return to workplaces should build on the positive pandemic experience of remote or ‘blended’ working, according to Fórsa.


The proposed phased return to workplaces should build on the positive pandemic experience of remote or ‘blended’ working, according to Fórsa.

 

The union this week said remote working had largely sustained or increased productivity throughout the pandemic, while bringing wider benefits to employers, workers and society.

 

The union’s call came after Tuesday’s (31st August) Cabinet sign-off on a comprehensive unwinding of Covid-19 restrictions, including a phased return to workplaces from 20th September. Speaking to reporters after the launch, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said he expected people to embrace ‘blended working’ – a mix of remote work and workplace attendance.

 

In a statement Fórsa said the benefits of remote or ‘blended’ working should not be abandoned. It confirmed that there had been some early engagement between the union and civil service management on the implementation of the Government’s ‘Blended Working Policy Statement,’ published in July.

 

The statement says the civil service will switch from pandemic-related remote working provisions to long-term ‘blended working’ arrangements between September 2021 and March 2022.

 

The current management-union engagement is aimed at agreeing a framework capable of being rolled-out across the public service, rather than being confined to central Government departments and agencies.

 

A Fórsa spokesperson said the public service should show a lead on remote working, which can bring significant benefits to staff, employers and society while sustaining service quality and productivity.

 

“We want to see a consistent approach across the civil and public service, with transparency and fairness over access to remote working. We are also seeking adequate protections on working conditions, privacy and data protection, a right to disconnect, and health and safety including mental health,” they said.

 

The Government’s Remote Working Strategy, published in January 2021, includes a pledge to establish a legal right to request remote working, introduce a legally admissible code of practice on the right to disconnect, review the treatment of remote working for tax purposes, and make remote working the norm for 20% of public sector staff.

 

It’s never been more important – or easier – to get the protections and benefits of union membership. Join Fórsa HERE or contact us HERE.

Budget should put services above tax cuts
by Niall Shanahan
 

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has published its pre-Budget submission called No Going Back: For A Fairer Future.


The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has published its pre-Budget submission called No Going Back: For A Fairer Future.

 

The submission contains a comprehensive set of budgetary recommendations designed to address the challenges facing the Irish economy as it continues re-opening following the Coivd-19 pandemic.

 

The document identifies the current inadequacy of Ireland’s comparatively low level of public spending. It says per capita public spending in Ireland is around €2,000 less than the average for other high-income EU countries.

 

And it warns that this has significant negative implications for the provision of public services and infrastructure, including crisis points like housing, health, early years care, higher education and public transport.

 

The submission calls for reform to employer PRSI, with a commitment to gradually increase the ‘social wage’ to workers in the form of improved social insurance benefits. And it says public spending increases should be prioritised in Budget 2022 and beyond.

 

Congress warns that the current high level of state revenue is being distorted upwards due to extremely high receipts that are currently being yielded from corporation taxes. It says this is unlikely to be sustainable, due to “increasing international pressure for greater tax justice and for a fundamental reform of the taxation of multinationals.”

 

The submission also calls on the Government to increase taxes on capital stocks, which “would have almost no employment impact,” and says plans to cut taxes over the next four years should be abandoned.

 

“There should be no going back to the old low tax and low spend model,” it says.

 

On health service provision, Congress says the time has come for private practice to be removed from public hospitals: “This will lead to a loss of revenue for the State. The resources required following the removal of private practice from public services must be sufficient to ensure the maintenance of adequate staffing at all times, as a priority in delivering safe patient care.”

 

Congress general secretary Patricia King’s said: “There should be ‘no going back’ to the old economic model,” and said the ‘indispensability’ of basic public services, and of the welfare state, was brought into sharp focus during the pandemic.

 

“We need a ‘new deal’ or new economic model to ensure a safe and secure future for all,” she said.

 

Patricia emphasised the important role of proper collective bargaining and social dialogue, which she said would be crucial to addressing fast-approaching employment challenges, including the need for a just transition to zero emissions, adapting to rapid technological change at work, minimising the impact of Brexit, reducing precariousness at work and inequality, and developing a new economic and industrial strategy as “the old tax avoidance-based FDI strategy comes under threat.”

 

Fórsa general secretary Kevin Callinan said the Congress submission captured essential measures necessary to making successful progress for workers in the wake of the pandemic.

 

“As we emerge from the pandemic we need better lives, better working conditions and a better planet. There are challenges facing us all, but we can’t assume we just go back to normal - we won’t just go back to normal - and while there are challenges, there are also opportunities there for employers, for unions and for government to take on, and to build a better future," he said.

 

Read the full pre-Budget 2022 submission HERE.

 

It’s never been more important – or easier – to get the protections and benefits of union membership. Join Fórsa HERE or contact us HERE.

Framework for vax conflicts sought
by Bernard Harbor
 

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has initiated discussions with employers’ body Ibec with a view to agreeing a framework to deal with any workplace conflicts over employees’ Covid-19 vaccine status. 


The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has initiated discussions with employers’ body Ibec with a view to agreeing a framework to deal with any workplace conflicts over employees’ Covid-19 vaccine status. While unions continue to encourage workers to get fully vaccinated – and take-up is high in Ireland – ICTU anticipates that some conflicts may arise.

 

Almost 6.8 million vaccines have so far been administered in the Republic, leaving 88% of over 18s fully vaccinated and 92% with at least one dose.

 

In a recent letter to Taoiseach Micheál Martin, ICTU general sectary Patricia King said unions backed the Government’s non- mandatory approach to vaccinations on constitutional, legal and human rights grounds. “While some workplace conflict can be expected on this subject it is our view that such exigencies should be managed within an overall framework agreement with the employer side,” she said.

 

However, recent guidance from the Data Protection Commission confirms that there is no legal basis for “unnecessary and excessive” collection of data regarding employees’ vaccination status. It says the processing of health data in response to Covid-19 should be guided by the Government’s public health policies.

 

Official Health and Safety Authority (HSA) guidance says that employers of workers who refuse Covid-19 vaccinations should undertake a risk assessment in cases where the staff member could be exposed to Covid-19 in the workplace.

 

The agency says some employers may have “no option” but to redeploy unvaccinated staff if they are “not safe to perform certain work tasks.”

 

Fórsa official Dessie Robinson – a former HSA board member who is currently part of a National Economic and Social Council team examining the psychological impact of Covid – said existing health and safety regulation is robust in this area. But he added that the regulations don’t explicitly state that an employee who refuses vaccination must be risk assessed and potentially redeployed.

 

“That’s why the HSA recommends the application of health and safety principles of risk assessment and avoidance of risk. Under the law, employers must provide a safe place to work ‘as far as is practicable.’ This means they must take all measures within their control to ensure the safety of the workplace.

 

“If an employee refuses vaccination, that decision increases the risk to them and their family. That would be very difficult to defend, especially considering the exceptional circumstances of this pandemic,” he said.

 

It’s never been more important – or easier – to get the protections and benefits of union membership. Join Fórsa HERE or contact us HERE.

Fórsa to launch skills academy
 

The Fórsa Skills Academy will be officially launched on Thursday 16th September. The academy is the new home for all of Fórsa’s training and development initiatives


The Fórsa Skills Academy will be officially launched on Thursday 16th September. The academy is the new home for all of Fórsa’s training and development initiatives. You can register to the online event HERE.

 

The skills academy will offer a wide range of introductory, expanded and advanced training designed for the union’s workplace representatives and branch activists. You can read more about the range of courses HERE. 

 

Details of the first introductory course – Fórsa 101 – have been circulated to branches, and we have invited expressions of interest. This is a half-day online course on the union and how it works, with a focus on the role of Fórsa workplace representatives.

 

The closing date for expressions of interest is 5.00pm on Wednesday, 15th September.

 

Members who are interested in attending should discuss their application with their branch training officer or branch secretary and the Fórsa official assigned to their branch.

 

Full details of how to apply are available HERE.

 

For further information contact Judith Coffey 021-425-5221 or at skillsacademy@forsa.ie.

 

It’s never been more important – or easier – to get the protections and benefits of union membership. Join Fórsa HERE or contact us HERE.

Afghan trade unionists at risk
by Mehak Dugal
 

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has welcomed the Government commitment to offer 150 Afghans humanitarian admission to Ireland, but says the offer is insufficient to protect refugees fleeing persecution.


The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has welcomed the Government commitment to offer 150 Afghans humanitarian admission to Ireland, but says the offer is insufficient to protect refugees fleeing persecution.

 

The Taliban’s recent takeover has placed thousands of Afghan trade unionists, journalists, civil society activists, and human rights defenders at serious risk of reprisals. ICTU has called for urgent international action to prevent further human rights abuses.

 

It says Ireland must take a lead, including through its membership of the UN Security Council. And it wants increased Irish development assistance for independent civil society organisations and trade unions in the region.

 

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres recently spoke of “chilling” reports of human rights violations against women and young girls.

 

Congress is supporting a call from Irish-based migrant, asylum and refugee advocates for the Government to agree to resettle at least 1,000 Afghan refugees. And, with the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) it has offered assistance to Afghan trade unionists.

 

Even prior to the Taliban takeover, trade union rights were grossly violated in Afghanistan, where the authorities were determined to deprive workers of union representation and oppress the work of trade unions in their fight to defend workers' rights.

 

Congress has raised alarm at threats to the leaders of the National Union of Afghanistan Workers and Employees (NUAWE) and has called on the Government to grant asylum to NUAWE leaders and their families.

 

Yvonne O’ Callaghan, Congress Global Solidarity chairperson, said that countries “must be willing to assume their responsibilities” under international law to protect and accept refugees.

 

According to UNHCR there are currently 96,000 Afghan people in neighbouring countries in need of protection.

 

You can support the people of Afghanistan by signing the Amnesty Ireland petition. 

Feature Article
Fórsa grant scheme invites applications
by Mehak Dugal
 

Fórsa is inviting eligible members and activists to apply to its third level grant support scheme, which gives limited financial assistance to those undertaking certified educational courses – up to third level – that will assist them in carrying out their union representative role.


Fórsa is inviting eligible members and activists to apply to its third level grant support scheme, which gives limited financial assistance to those undertaking certified educational courses – up to third level – that will assist them in carrying out their union representative role.

 

The scheme does not cover courses designed to enhance professional or career development unless they also improve a member’s ability to act as a Fórsa rep.

 

Applicants, who must be fully paid-up Fórsa members, can only apply by completing the approved application form and they must also have the support of their own Fórsa branch.

 

The closing date for applications is Wednesday 13th October 2021.

 

Full details of the application requirements and available support are available HERE. 

 

The application form is available HERE.

 

It’s never been more important – or easier – to get the protections and benefits of union membership. Join Fórsa HERE or contact us HERE.

Also in this issue
Green Ribbon 2021: Positive message for mental health
by Niall Shanahan
 

 

 


The See Change campaign for positive mental health is underway throughout September.

 

Each year the organisation rolls out its month-long national Green Ribbon initiative to encourage people in Ireland to end mental health stigma and discrimination. This is the ninth successive year of the campaign.

 

The organisation aims to promote a better understanding of mental health, to champion equality and bring an end to discrimination for everyone affected by mental health problems. See Change promotes a vision an Ireland where every person has an open and positive attitude to their own and others' mental health, and aims to create an environment where people are more open and positive in their attitudes and behaviour towards mental health.

 

To get the conversation started, everyone is encouraged to wear the Green Ribbon, an international symbol for mental health awareness. By wearing the ribbon you’ll be showing you’re committed to influencing positive change.

 

You don’t need to be an expert to start talking about mental health or have all the answers. Sometimes the most helpful thing you can do is to let someone know you are there for them and simply listen.

 

Let people know you are open to having a conversation by wearing the green ribbon.

 

Fórsa staff will be joining in this year, and encouraging union members to get involved in a positive conversation about mental health. To find out more, and to place an order for your own Green Ribbon, visit the See Change website.

Harassment targeted in joint campaign
by Mehak Dugal
 

 

 


Irish unions and NGOs have called for the prompt passage of a new international convention that aims to protect women and other workers from harassment and abuse.

 

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has joined ActionAid Ireland and the Men’s Development Network to put pressure on the Irish Government to quickly adopt International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention on Violence and Harassment – known as C190 – and to implement accompanying recommendations.

 

The ILO is a United Nations body that brings together representatives of governments, workers and employers. Its conventions only become legally binding once they are accepted by members states.

 

The campaign is calling on the Tánaiste to progress the adoption to make Ireland a “global leader” in formalising the status of C190 and to set a positive example to the rest of the world. As Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Mr Varadkar has responsibility for ratification of ILO conventions.

 

Only nine countries have so far formally adopted C190, which was adopted by the ILO’s General Conference over two years ago. Ireland is publicly committed to early ratification.

 

The campaign is also asking the Irish Government to update legislation to oblige companies to take actions to eliminate all forms of harassment and violence against women in their supply chains.

 

Citing the dangerous and undignified working conditions in industries such as electronics, toys, entertainment, fast fashion and agriculture, ActionAid Ireland says many Irish-based companies source from factories and producers in lower-income countries where employment laws offer far less protection against violence and harassment.

 

It’s never been more important – or easier – to get the protections and benefits of union membership. Join Fórsa HERE or contact us HERE.

Join Fórsa online
 

 

 


Workers who wish to join Fórsa can to do so using a new ‘join online’ function on the union’s website.

 

Going live with the new system follows several months of research, preparation and testing aimed at making it easier than ever to join the union. It also goes live as the union continues to process a large number of new membership applications, as interest in joining the union has surged since the onset of the Covid-19 crisis.

 

Fórsa’s general secretary Kevin Callinan commented: “The current crisis has created the necessity to be able to carry out our business in different ways. Work on this project had commenced before the Covid-19 crisis took hold, and its completion marks a vital step as we tackle the challenges of living in changed times.

 

“We can see that more people want to join a union in response to what’s happening in the wider economy. It’s vital that they can take those initial steps quickly and easily, and making the membership application process more accessible is part of that process.

 

“This is a crucial new venture to enable Fórsa to substantially increase our membership - and to strengthen the union’s hand - at a critical time in the union’s development,” he said.

 

The online facility is a streamlined and simplified membership application process, and will be the quickest and easiest way to join the union. All incoming applications will continue to be subject to check-off and approval by Fórsa branches and the national executive committee, while the new online system is designed to ease the administrative burden on branches.

 

You can join Fórsa online at https://join.forsa.ie/

 

Fórsa: Here to support you
 

 

 

 

 


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 9am to 5pm 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.