Fórsa’s elected National Executive met earlier this week and decided overwhelmingly to recommend acceptance of the proposed new public service agreement, Building Momentum. The proposals will be put to a ballot of the union’s members early in the New Year.

The proposal is for a two-year agreement, to run from January 2021 to December 2022, with two pay increases, each worth 1% of annual salary, or €500 a year, whichever is the greater. This means the deal is worth substantially more for lower paid workers in percentage terms.

A third increase, worth a further 1%, would be available for grade-based bargaining for all public service grades. This could either be used to deal with issues affecting particular grades, or it could be taken as a straight 1% pay award.

The package also retains existing protections against the privatisation and outsourcing of public services, and it preserves the €100 cap on CORU registration fees for health and social care professionals.

Building Momentum also requires the education department to consult with Fórsa about the possible updating of the SNA contract, including the appropriate use of the contracted 72 hours. This provides the first opportunity to renegotiate the SNA contract for over 15 years.

Haddington Road hours

The deal also addresses the additional hours introduced for many civil and public servants under the 2013 Haddington Road agreement.

This would be done through the establishment of an independent body by the end of March 2021. It would make recommendations to begin the process of returning to pre-Haddington Road hours in 2022, with €150 million set aside to commence implementation. Then there’s provision for a successor agreement to engage on the roll-out of additional recommendations.

Building Momentum also includes certain productivity measures, as is the case in all public service agreements. But union negotiators faced down attempts to introduce open competitions for all posts, a five-over-seven working week, and other unacceptable measures. Like previous deals, it also includes an ‘industrial peace’ clause.

Fórsa general secretary Kevin Callinan, who led the union negotiating team as chair of the ICTU Public Services Committee, said the outcome represented a positive short-term package, negotiated against a difficult background, to build on the momentum of recent pay restoration and public service flexibility and service quality.

“The proposals are substantially weighted towards lower-income civil and public servants, and they represent solid progress on the three priorities we outlined at the outset of the talks. These were a mechanism to address issues outstanding from the Haddington Road agreement, including additional working time, a separate mechanism to address sectoral issues, and a realistic and acceptable approach to pay.

“This isn’t everything we all wish for. But it includes important advances and vital protections that will not exist in the absence of an agreement, and is the best that could have been achieved at this time,” he said.

Fórsa will be announcing the arrangements for balloting all members covered by the proposed deal in due course. It’s expected that the ballot will take place first thing in 2021. The closing date will be before the 15th February, which is when the ICTU Public Services Committee will accept or reject the package on the basis of aggregated union ballot outcomes.

Covid restrictions on travel and assembly, together with the impending holiday period and increased remote working, led the PSC to agree a longer balloting period than usual.

Get the full details HERE.

Read the full agreement HERE.

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

If accepted, the proposed new public service agreement won’t immediately resolve the longstanding injustice of the so-called ‘Haddington Road hours.’ But it’s a major breakthrough nonetheless.

That’s because the proposed agreement would deliver three things that appeared unachievable even a month ago.

First, the logjam has been broken after seven years of intransigence, during which politicians and civil service management simply refused to countenance any movement at all. Soon we’ll be voting on proposals that say – in black and white – that this and other Haddington Road issues are “outstanding matters to be resolved.”

Second, the proposed deal outlines a process that, next March, will begin to resolve the issue and – unusually – earmarks a substantial sum of money to start implementing the solution.

The €150 million set aside is significant in monetary terms. But, just as importantly, it’s a clear signal that the process agreed will result in action.

 
Thirdly, the proposal is clear that work will continue beyond the two-year term of Building Momentum. Setting aside the fact that management overestimates the cost of returning the hours, the allocation of €150 million doesn’t represent a full-stop on the matter.

What’s caused this substantial change in the landscape since the 2013 Haddington Road deal put those working less than 35 hours a week up to 37, and those on 35 or more up to 39?

Again, three factors present themselves.

First, Fórsa changed the terms of the debate and framed it as an issue of equity, particularly for women who account for most of those affected.

Writing in a May 2019 blog, Fórsa general secretary Kevin Callinan said it was inequitable that higher-paid public servants were seeing their Haddington Road sacrifices restored while predominantly female lower-paid and middle-income grades were not.

This argument gained ground in a period when the union also placed the issue in a broader campaign about working time and the potential for a ‘four-day week’ across the whole economy.

Secondly, we entered negotiations last month saying that Fórsa simply wouldn’t do a deal that didn’t meaningfully address the hours and other Haddington Road issues. Some on the other side may have been surprised when Callinan stuck to that, but stick to it he did.

Thirdly – and crucially – the formation of Fórsa gave a strong voice to the grades affected, specifically those in clerical and executive grades in across health, local councils, education, State agencies and the civil service.

When the union said there’d be no deal without action on the hours, the other side also knew there’d be no deal without Fórsa.

Building Momentum won’t fully resolve the problem over the next two years, not least because nurses and other clinicians – including Fórsa members – are affected at a time when health staff resources are strained.

But the creation of Fórsa, and the union’s stance, has delivered significant movement now, and the promise that the hours can be sorted in the not-too-distant future.

Fórsa has welcomed the proposed prioritisation of healthcare staff and other key workers in the ‘provisional vaccine allocation groups’ published by the health department last week. These groups will be among those prioritised to receive the Covid-19 vaccination once it’s approved for use in Ireland.

Fórsa said the high priority given to frontline health workers, who will be the second group prioritised for vaccination, was expected. The union added that the inclusion of health service support staff as the fourth group was also necessary and welcome.

The union said it would press for certain frontline community sector workers to be included as key workers in essential jobs who can’t avoid a high risk of exposure. This is the tenth priority in the list published last week.

The Government subsequently published a detailed national vaccination strategy, which will see Covid vaccines rolled out by a range of qualified health professionals in three phases, with the highest priority groups receiving the vaccines first. The strategy says vaccines will be administered from long-term care facilities, hospitals, mass vaccination clinics, GP surgeries and community pharmacies. 

The union has sought and secured an engagement over the details of the roll-out process, as it’s anticipated that a significant number of Fórsa grades will have to be involved in the programme.

Separately, Fórsa has also convinced the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER) to include reception areas and public counters as areas where the use of face masks should be considered. This was set out in new guidance issued earlier this month. See point 1.8 in this FAQ document.

The union-negotiated cap on professional registration fees for health and social care professionals (HSCPs) will stay in place if the new public service agreement is accepted in ballots of union members.

In recent years, a growing number of HSCPs have been required to register with CORU, the statutory body that regulates the professions, in order to continue practising.

Dieticians, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, social workers and speech and language therapists are currently regulated by CORU. Clinical biochemists, counsellors, orthoptists, podiatrists, psychologists, psychotherapists and social care workers will also come under CORU regulation in the coming period.

On foot of a Fórsa demand, the annual registration fee was reduced from €295 to €100 under the 2013 Haddington Road agreement. The union has successfully insisted that the cap remain in place when subsequent public service deals were negotiated, and it’s now been confirmed that the €100 cap will be retained if Building Momentum is accepted. 

Fórsa also has a protection scheme in place to provide support, guidance and professional legal advice, at no extra cost, if a Fórsa member in the professions is subject to a CORU complaint or ‘fitness to practise’ procedure. You can get the details HERE. 

Unions have made a breakthrough on pay restoration for members in 250 State-funded voluntary health and social service providers – known as Section 39 agencies - following a conciliation conference in the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) last week. 

Planned industrial action by members of Fórsa and SIPTU in Cork and Kerry, which was to take place earlier this week, was suspended on foot of the agreement between the group of unions and the HSE for two phases of pay restoration to be implemented next year. 

The first instalment – a payment of up to €1000 annual salary increase, effective from 1st January 2021 – will be paid in January 2021. 

A second instalment, worth 50% of the outstanding pay restoration due, will take effect from 31st May 2021, and will be paid in June.   

Fórsa official Catherine Keogh said the agreement was a significant breakthrough for Section 39 workers: “This has been an exceptionally challenging year for these workers. 

“Our one-day strike took place on 14th February, which was just a few weeks before the Covid-19 crisis hit, and these are the workers whose professionalism and experience was called upon like never before in response to that crisis.

“This is a welcome breakthrough, and some good news at the end of a long and very difficult year for them,” she said. 

Talks
The parties will convene again under the auspices of the WRC at the beginning of the second quarter of 2021 to discuss the date of application of the final phase of pay restoration and a union claim for retrospective payments.  

In 2019 an agreement covering 50 larger Section 39 employments was approved by unions, and was followed by talks to achieve a similar agreement for the remaining 250 smaller employments in the sector.

Failure to reach agreement led to a one-day strike by Fórsa members in a number of agencies last February.

Section 39 organisations were instructed by the HSE to cut staff pay in line with reductions in pay for public servants during the economic crisis.

However, staff in these agencies were not covered by subsequent public service pay agreements that restored pay.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions has written to the Minister for Health seeking that membership of the Dialogue Forum with Voluntary Bodies be increased to include union representatives.

Unions say this forum can contribute to the resolution of the long-term structural issues in the sector and their inclusion is consistent with the commitments in the programme for government to wider and deeper social dialogue. 

The cabinet has finally approved an increase in parent’s leave from two to five weeks for each parent, but says this can’t happen until April 2021 because IT systems need to be updated to make it possible. The necessary legislation is expected in the New Year.

Each parent of a child born on or before 1st November 2019 is currently eligible to take two weeks’ parent’s leave in the child’s first year. The leave, which attracts a parent’s benefit of €245 a week for workers with sufficient PRSI contributions, is different from unpaid parental leave.

Following a budget announcement in October, it had been expected that parent’s leave would increase to five weeks from next April, when the period in which the leave can be taken would also increase to two years.

Earlier this month the Fórsa news bulletin reported that unions had welcomed reports that parent’s leave would eventually be extended to nine weeks. This is the minimum requirement under an EU directive, which is due to be fully transposed into Irish law by August 2022.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has expressed concern at the low take-up of both paternity leave and parents' leave. It says this is mainly due to the relatively low payment of €245 a week and most employers’ reluctance to top up the benefit.

Some 50% of fathers don’t take the two weeks’ paternity leave they are due.

A recent spending review by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER) found that neither the public service nor most private sector employers topped up the payment.

SOURCE: Citizens Information.

Fórsa has told members of the Oireachtas that the Sláintecare programme must create an integrated healthcare system that places the patient at its centre, discard traditional turf warfare over control of the system, and deliver a community-led intervention model that ensures patients receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time.

The union said such an approach could relieve the pressure on the acute system, which is bursting at the seams. The comments were made at a virtual Oireachtas briefing organised by the union’s Health and Welfare Division last week.

The union’s head of health, Éamonn Donnelly, told Oireachtas members that the Covid-19 pandemic demanded an acceleration of an integrated healthcare reform agenda: “Since the creation of the HSE in 2005, there have been various bit-part restructuring models. None of those models have created an integrated health care system. This time it absolutely must achieve that.

“Fórsa is well prepared for the new model as we’ve been at the centre of negotiations on developing integrated structures in both Community Health Networks and Childrens’ Disability Networks,” he said.

“Fórsa represents a breadth and depth of grades of workers across both the acute and community health sectors like no other union. Fórsa is therefore well placed to be a significant positive influence on the delivery of a real integrated healthcare model.

“The new model will see a massive increase in community-led health interventions requiring an additional 1,500 HSCPs (Health and Social Care Professionals) whose roles are crucial to service planning and delivery,” he said.

Éamonn criticised what he described as the “accepted narrative” that the health system needs more doctors and nurses and fewer administrators: “This narrative is only relevant to a healthcare system with an over-reliance on acute hospital care. 

“Measurement of our health system can’t continue to be based on waiting list times and hospital trolley numbers, as these are measurements of system failure, not outcomes.

“Our shared aim is to achieve the creation of a community-led, integrated healthcare system that places the patient at the centre, and ensures that patient has access to all of the specialists and providers of different care needs within the same community location,” he said.

Éamonn said administrative staff in health are unfairly targeted by some commentators with accusations that they are surplus to the requirements of an efficient healthcare system.

“Those who make such accusations do so without any understanding the range and complexity of roles carried out by administrative staff, which includes the scheduling of hospital appointments, managing waiting lists, providing first point of contact, payroll, follow-up on therapy interventions, ICT systems and services, home help service coordination, procurement, logistics, and more recently contact-tracing, which will be a continuing requirement even as a vaccine is rolled out,” he said.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has called on the Government to give all workers a legal right to request flexible working arrangements, including remote work.

A new European Union directive will give this right to carers and parents of young children by 2022. But ICTU fears this may result in home-working becoming “highly feminised,” with adverse effects on women’s career prospects.

Earlier this month, ICTU’s social policy officer, Laura Bambrick, told the Citizens’ Assembly on Work and Welfare that Irish-based workers’ rights to flexible work – including flexitime, part-time work, job-sharing and remote working – lags behind most EU countries. “Under current law, flexible and remote working is solely at the employer’s discretion,” she said.

She called on the Government to extend the right to request flexible working to every worker when it legislates to give effect to the new EU directive on work-life balance.

“Limiting the right to carers and parents of small children risks a highly feminised shift to working from home, which would have negative consequences for women’s career progression,” she said. Laura cited US research which shows that, compared to their office-based colleagues, remote workers are at greater risk of being overlooked for training and promotional opportunities.

Women are far more likely than men to take time out of paid work to cover caring responsibilities.

Earlier this year, Fórsa highlighted the issue of career prospects in evidence to a Government consultation on the future of remote work.

An earlier survey of the union’s members found that almost a fifth feared that remote working could reduce their access to training and inhibit their career development.

The Fórsa submission said: “There is a responsibility on managers to ensure that all staff have access to training, career development and promotional prospects regardless of whether they work remotely, in the workplace, or a blend of the two.”

The union also supported ICTU’s call for expanded legal rights for all employees to request flexible working arrangements in the light of experience in Europe and elsewhere.

The union’s National Executive has approved the appointment of Katie Morgan as national secretary and Ashley Connolly as national secretary in due course. These senior Fórsa posts, which involve heading up a division or department of the union, were filled following a confined competition.

Katie has been assigned as national secretary for the Services and Enterprises division, where deputy general secretary Matt Staunton has been leading since the retirement of Angela Kirk earlier this year. But Ashley will cover the position on an acting basis for the time being as Katie is about to go on maternity leave.

Ashley will also continue to be the lead official for cabin crew, but her direct responsibility for the Health and Safety Authority branch and CORU cases are to be reassigned.

Earlier this year the National Executive agreed to make two appointments, at least one of which must be a woman, when national secretary posts become available. The second appointee will take up the next post that becomes available. The measure was put in place to address the gender imbalance in the union’s top posts.

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

Fórsa’s Dublin Hospitals’ branch hosted two information sessions for members last Thursday (10th December) as part of an initiative by the branch to fill the gap in workplace safety training, which a survey of members has revealed is not being met in some hospitals where members are working. 

The matter of some hospitals failing to provide adequate training for worker and lead worker representatives, required by the Government’s Return to Work Safely protocol, was raised by members at a recent Dublin Hospitals’ branch meeting. 

The branch subsequently undertook a survey of members and non-members in Dublin hospitals, revealing that a fifth of the 450 respondents are lead worker representatives in their workplaces, out of whom only eight have been provided training by their employer. 

Fórsa official Olajide Ogidan explained: “Almost two-thirds of members did not know who the lead worker representatives are in their workplaces which is an indication that many hospitals have not appointed lead worker representatives or they have failed to communicate with their staff."

 
“Fórsa is concerned that many Dublin hospitals have not taken the Return to Work Safely protocol as seriously as they should. Fórsa commends the work of the few hospitals that have done this successfully,” he said.

Information sessions
Olajide explained that the branch collaborated with Cornmarket to host the two information sessions, and said the attendance and response from members was very encouraging. He added: “With retail, some bars and restaurants now open again, we need to be aware that the virus itself has no plans to take a break. We can’t afford to be complacent if we genuinely want to minimise the risk of contracting Covid-19."  

“The branch is also conscious of the impact of the pandemic and remote working on members’ mental health. This is why the branch committee decided to survey the needs of members in this area and to organise the information sessions.

“Fórsa is committed to engaging with our members on this critical matter of health and safety, and doing everything we can to enhance their protection in the workplace,” he said.

The first information session, led by Fórsa official Dessie Robinson, provided advice for worker and lead worker representatives on the Return to Work Safely protocol, while the second session focused on mental health and building resilience with guest speaker Ryan O’Reilly.

Fórsa members in the health sector and elsewhere will vote to decide whether their union backs acceptance or rejection of the proposed new agreement. It’s your choice. But we will need your personal up-to-date contact details to guarantee that your voice is heard.

So, we’re asking members to visit the Fórsa website and give us your personal email address, home postal address, and mobile phone number.

We’re seeking personal (rather than work) details because this reduces the chance of union communications being blocked or lost in your employer’s systems. This information will be held in strict compliance with our data protection policy, and used only for communications on union matters like the forthcoming ballot.

Fórsa member Neil Murphy, secretary of the union’s Galway branch, explains that Fórsa has invested in new infrastructure to improve communications with members.

“Please make sure you give us your personal email accounts and home address because not all work accounts allow for Fórsa emails. Using personal details is the only way to ensure that you receive essential information at a time when your health, your safety and your workplace conditions are so important,” says Neil.

Please also share this message and video with colleagues who may not receive the Fórsa ebulletin.

To update your details quickly and easily visit the ‘update my details’ page on the Fórsa website and complete the online form.

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

Victims of domestic violence will soon be entitled to a period of paid leave from work, after last week’s Government announcement that there is to be a public consultation process on the matter. The development has been broadly welcomed by trade unions, including Fórsa. 

The union’s equality officer, Billy Hannigan, highlighted the importance of the minister’s announcement. “It’s widely recognised that rates of domestic abuse have spiked this year as a result of the pandemic, and it’s imperative that the Government puts appropriate measures in place to help protect victims.

“Employers must work with trade unions to develop workplace policies that put supports in place. This includes training staff in how to spot the signs of domestic abuse, and informing them how to support and properly signpost people,” he said. 

Billy added that the state, in its role as an employer, does not have to wait for legislation, but could implement supports for its own employees across the civil and public service before a bill is passed.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) recently called on the Irish government to ratify an International Labour Organisation convention on violence and harassment in the world of work, which includes provisions for domestic violence leave. The UN body – made up of representatives of governments, unions and employers – also called for flexible work arrangements and the inclusion of domestic violence in workplace risk assessments. 

The proposal for paid domestic abuse leave was first mooted in a trade union guide to domestic abuse produced by ICTU’s Women’s Committee in 2009. A motion calling for the right was debated and passed at its women’s conference in March of this year. 

Equality minister O’Gorman agreed to the consultation after Sinn Féin published legislation on the issue.

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

Fórsa and other unions are continuing their efforts to pursue the implementation of Labour Court recommendation for fair redundancy payments for former staff of the Sisters of Charity, following the union’s advice to accept an ex-gratia settlement of €3,000 (per qualifying employee) as a “gesture of goodwill” from the religious order, following the closure of three care home locations earlier this year.

Union official Seán McElhinney said the union wanted to ensure the former staff would have the opportunity to receive the payment before Christmas, in a note to members to advise on how to apply for the payment before the 10th December deadline.

“The energetic members’ campaign for a fair redundancy, has already secured the offer of Sisters of Charity. While the offer falls short of the recommendation of the Labour Court, it is a testament to the resolve of our members that we have achieved such an offer, and have the opportunity to bank it just ahead of Christmas.

“While Fórsa remains critical of the Sisters of Charity, we must now advise members to indicate their acceptance of this offer. The negotiators want to ensure that we enhance, as far as possible, the statutory terms which were paid by liquidators earlier this year. More is needed, and the HSE must come back to the table to play its part,” he said.

The offer by the Sisters of Charity followed a sustained protest in October by former staff as unions sought the implementation of Labour Court recommendation for fair redundancy payments.

Like many other workplaces, Fórsa offices will be closed at certain times over the holiday. The union’s offices will close on the evening of Wednesday 23^rd December 2020, and will reopen on Monday 4^th January 2021, subject to any emergency health measures in place at that time.

If you need to get in touch, you can reach Fórsa by phone on 01-817-1500 between 10.00am and 4.00pm. Between 28^th and 31^st December, there will be someone available to deal with urgent queries. At times when the phones aren’t staffed, you can leave a message and someone will get back to you.

In the meantime, you can keep up with important developments on the union's website. 

As we sign off on our final bulletin of 2020, a special word of acknowledgement and thanks goes out to the many Fórsa members who will be working or on-call, maintaining vital public services over the holiday period. And we wish all our members a wonderful Christmas and a very happy and healthy New Year. Have a good break. We look forward to returning with all the news in January.

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

The Cabinet last week approved proposed amendments to the 1995 Adoptive Leave Act, which will enable married male same-sex couples to avail of adoptive leave.

The couples will be able to choose who takes the leave.

In a separate development, a new official circular gives effect to a legal pension right for same sex couples who were unable to marry or enter a civil partnership prior to retirement from the public service. They now have access to the public service pension spouses’ and children’s scheme.

Published at the end of November, the circular has limited application as it is only relevant to former members of the original public service spouses’ and children’s scheme or former pensionable public servants who didn’t join an original scheme when the option was made available to them.

The change is not relevant to members and former members of the ‘revised’ spouses’ and children’s scheme or to members of the single public service scheme, which applies to public servants employed since January 2013. This is because both schemes already include the provision.

Fórsa has set a target of achieving a resource efficiency rating above 50% within a year, and above 90% within five years as part of a new sustainability action plan. The union also plans to become carbon neutral by 2025.

The measures are contained in the union’s recently-adopted five-year strategic plan, and on foot of a 2019 environmental review of the union’s activities.

This report was prepared by the Clean Technology Centre, based at CIT, and outlines the current status of Fórsa’s environmental performance, as well as actions which Fórsa should consider to improve its sustainability.

A separate carbon footprint report, which accompanies this report, has also been prepared in full accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG), and covered the emitting activities for Fórsa.

The strategic organisational review team was tasked with developing a clear internal climate action and sustainability strategy to act as a roadmap for delivering on the Fórsa Sustainability Policy which was adopted by the National Executive Committee on 25th September 2019.

Billy Hannigan of the Fórsa Strategic Organisational Review Team said: “This environmental review has helped identify areas where Fórsa has been proactive in the development of a sustainable action plan. While we have already implemented some steps and made improvements, there is still a long way to go and scope for a lot more improvement.

By improving the union’s own practice, Fórsa will be in a position to strengthen our case for the kind of radical action on climate change and sustainability that we advocate for in workplaces, wider society and internationally.”

Some short-term goals set out in the recommendations of the report have already been identified and achieved during the course of the review, which including the rollout of LED lighting and centralised printing.

Meanwhile, the union’s strategic plan for 2021-2025 also includes the following key sustainability objectives, under the initiative of ‘Creating a greener, more sustainable union’:

• Improve the sustainability of Fórsa’s offices by bringing energy consumption in line with best practice benchmarks and achieving a resource efficiency rating greater than 50% in year 1, and greater than 90% within 5 years.
• Strive to become carbon neutral by 2025 by reducing the carbon footprint of Fórsa’s direct activities, reviewing indirect activities such as procurement processes and offsetting of the remainder of Fórsa’s carbon emissions.
• Consider the recommendations of Fórsa’s environmental audit with a view to achieving the objectives set out in the report within the target timeframes.

The union is also looking to establish an in-house ‘green team’ to oversee the rollout and delivery of this action plan in the near future.

Read the carbon footprint report HERE. 

Read Fórsa’s sustainability policy HERE. 

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

Colombia’s peace process is under threat from the rising number of murders of community leaders and human rights activists, according to a report released this week by the Irish-British NGO Justice for Colombia (JFC).

It says over 250 activists have been killed in 2020, and more than 240 former FARC combatants, and 44 of their family members, have been murdered since the signing of the 2016 peace accord.

JFC says the Colombian Government’s verbal commitment to the peace process is “often contradicted by political decisions or inaction, which push in the opposite direction.” It cites underfunding of the peace process, slow implementation of rural reforms, and recent human rights scandals involving Colombian security forces.

Published on foot of an international delegation to Colombia, which included the ICTU president Gerry Murphy, the report sets out the principal advances and concerns facing the historic peace deal signed by the Colombian Government and the FARC guerrilla organisation over four years ago.

Commenting on the report, Fórsa general secretary Kevin Callinan called on the Irish Government to step-up diplomatic pressure on the Colombian administration.

“Given the unique perspective and experience of the Irish peace process, our Government is perfectly placed to encourage the Colombian authorities to deliver on their commitments. Fórsa is proud of its strong support for JFC, and this report explains, yet again, why Colombia must remain in the international human rights spotlight,” he said.

The report also highlights some areas of progress, and praises the work of the transitional justice system. Made up of a peace tribunal, a truth commission, and a unit to search for people who have disappeared, the transitional justice mechanisms “give an opportunity for victims to have their rights recognised on a scale never previously achieved in Colombia,” it says.

This is JFCs third report into the peace process, published as part of its peace monitor project, which involves arranging delegations of politicians and trade unionists to observe the peace process in progress. The most recent visit included meetings with human rights organisations, the Colombian Government, the FARC, and the UN Verification Mission.

Read the report HERE. 

Fórsa has given a guarded welcome to a Government announcement that the final report of the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes will be published in January. But the union says a way must be found to give survivors and their families full access to their own personal records.

The records, collected during the Commission’s five-year investigation, are currently sealed for 30 years. In late October, this was underpinned by a Dáil vote on legislation to transfer the Commission’s 60,000 records to Tusla, the child and family agency.

However, the Government subsequently said State agencies would engage with the Data Protection Commissioner on the matter. Earlier this month, children’s minister Roderic O’Gorman said the Government would provide “the full allowable GDPR access,” but admitted that this would not fully resolve the question.

Fórsa says the New Year must herald a new start for the survivors, who should be granted a long-overdue right to access their own data and testimonies. Union official Shane Lambert said the October Dáil debate had been a huge blow to survivors.

“This is going to be a difficult Christmas for families across Ireland, but none more than those of the survivors who deserve dignity and respect. Fórsa fully supports the survivors and their families, including their demand for access to documents about their own personal history. These should not be kept from them for another three decades – a situation that means many will never know their full and true life stories.

“This is not a historical issue, and the hurt and anguish for all those affected remains real. The New Year is a time for new beginnings, and 2021 should see the removal of all barriers and obstacles to survivors and their families discovering their past. This would help them find closure, and it would help our society to meet its responsibilities and move on as a country from this dark chapter,” he said.

The Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation was established in early 2015 to investigate a range of things including arrangements for the entry of single women into the homes, the living conditions they experienced, and mortality amongst mothers and children residing in the institutions.

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

New CSO figures published earlier this month demonstrate the need for Government to continue to stimulate the economy through income supports, business supports and public investment, according to Fórsa.

The CSO data shows that domestic demand soared when Covid-19 restrictions were eased in the third quarter of 2020.

Fórsa says the figures underlined the need for Government to reject austerity in its approach to public finances, and instead give people – particularly those on low incomes – the hope and confidence that will help the economy bounce back when the Covid situation stabilises.

The union’s general secretary Kevin Callinan said a return to austerity in the management of the public finances would sap confidence.

“If we give people hope, we will also give them confidence to spend and participate in the economy and in their communities. This is the lifeblood that can quickly rejuvenate businesses – be they large, medium or small.

“And it’s the route to rapid employment, economic and fiscal recovery, which must be grasped in all sectors of the economy. All the economic projections point to a rapid economic and fiscal bounce-back once the Covid situation stabilises, and we have cause to hope that will start to happen in the coming months,” he said.

The CSO figures for the July-September 2020 period, during which Covid restrictions were eased considerably, showed:

• Personal spending on goods and services grew by over 21%
• Underlying domestic activity increased by almost 19%
• The distribution, transport, hotel and restaurants sector grew by 47%
• Exports of goods and services increased by almost 6%.

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 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.