Fórsa is calling on members to join the ‘Raise the Roof’ protest in Cork this weekend, on Saturday 21st June, beginning at 2pm at the National Monument on Grand Parade. 

Fórsa is a member of the broad coalition organising the ‘Raise the Roof’ campaign and will be taking part on the day. 

We are joined in the ‘Raise the Roof’ campaign by fellow trade unions, civil society groups, and political parties, who are demanding that the government take concerted and effective action to address the deepening housing crisis.  

According to recent figures from the Daft.ie, average rents in Cork City have risen by 13.6% in the past year, to €2,213, with a similar rate of increase being felt across Munster. 

Fórsa head of campaigns Kevin Donoghue said, “We had a great turn out from members in Dublin at a ‘Raise the Roof’ demo on Tuesday. We’re hoping to see our Cork members and members across Munster turn out in force. Unaffordable rents and housing prices are impacting our members’ lives and careers all around Ireland.” 

“The cost of housing is spiralling across the country. Not just in the big cities, but in the towns and countryside. We have to say enough is enough” he continued. 

The Cork protest follows a protest outside Leinster House on Tuesday 17th June, which precipitated renewed scrutiny of government failings in housing provisions in the Dáil. The protest was widely reported on, with coverage appearing on RTE, The Irish Times, The Irish Independent, The Journal, and the Irish Examiner, amongst many others.

Speaking at the protest, Fórsa member Elli Horgan said “I’m being forced to move out of Dublin because my rent is over a thousand euro. I’m a public healthcare worker, I want to serve Dublin, but I have no choice.”

The ‘Raise the Roof’ campaign is calling on government to adopt a series of policy demands to address the housing crisis. These include:  

• An expanded programme of public housing on public land, led by local authorities and housing bodies to deliver affordable housing.  
• Ensure that at least 20% of all housing is public housing, in line with Housing Commission report.  
• Move to a genuinely affordable not-for-profit cost rental model.  
• Full restoration and expansion of the tenant-in-situ scheme.  
• Urgent action to tackle the tens of thousands of vacant and derelict properties.  
• An immediate restoration of the ban on no fault evictions and a freeze on all rent increases.  
• And most of all, we need a clear commitment that workers will be able to live in the communities they serve.  

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