Members of Fórsa who work in South Dublin County Council are to vote on potential industrial action in upcoming weeks. The ballot will open on Tuesday 4th February and close on Tuesday 18th February. Voting will take place in-person.

Members will be asked if they wish to take industrial action in relation to the outsourcing of legal services associated with rate collection by SDCC.

Fórsa official Maura Calahan explained that the issue began in 2019 when the Council first outsourced the work. At that time the union agreed to this as an interim measure and on a time-limited basis in order to clear a back log that had arisen.

“The problem is what happened at the end of the original contract. The Council decided to extend the contract without consultation of our members. This goes against the most basic industrial relations processes.”

She continued: “Fórsa has been trying to secure agreement with management to establish correct staffing resources within the Legal Department to allow the work to return in-house. But this has been dragging on for years now with no real effort to seek resolution at all on the Council’s side. We have been up every avenue available to us, from conciliation at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) to discussion at the Local Authority National Council (LANC) – all to no avail.”

Given the impasse the SDCC branch of Fórsa has decided that a ballot of members must take place to determine next steps. 

Noel McCarthy, branch chair said: “Our members did this work for years and then it was taken away from them, with no explanation. They’re more than capable of doing this work and should have the opportunity to do it. Management won’t acknowledge our position, or that they’re in the wrong.” 

The ballot will open on Tuesday 4th February and run until Tuesday 18th February. During that time members will be able to vote in-person in the union office in SDCC. A mobile voting booth will also travel to libraries, depots and the office in Clondalkin.

Further information will issue to members concerned next week.

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