Fórsa has said it wants a fair and transparent approach to worker requests for blended work after Dublin City Council staff were told to return to the office full-time from next month.

Workplace Relations Commission talks on the future of Ireland’s water services have adjourned to allow management consider union proposals for incentives to encourage staff to voluntarily transfer from local authorities to a single national water provider.

Public expenditure minister Michael McGrath has said the Government is willing to go beyond the pay terms in the Building Momentum public service agreement. But added that this must be done in a “balanced” way.

Just 1% of employees have the protection of a menstrual health policy in their workplace, according to a survey published by Fórsa last week. 

The absence of agreement between unions, Government and employer representatives on practical measures to expand the range of free and affordable public services is undermining the national response to Ireland’s cost of living crisis, according to Fórsa.

Fórsa has called for a fundamental review and reform of working time and working patterns across the economy. 

A new study has ranked Ireland among the worst European countries when it comes to paid maternity leave.

The Irish system of local government is the weakest and most under-funded in the EU, with a Council of Europe Report in 2013 indicating that local authorities here have “less autonomy, less authority and less power” than their EU counterparts.

Fórsa’s president has criticised the Government’s approach to giving workers the right to request remote or blended working. 

Fórsa is to step up its campaign for expanded State service provision and a “best-of-class” social wage including free health care at the point of delivery, access to free or affordable childcare and early years’ education, social housing worthy of the name, enhanced local services and accessible high-quality education.

Delegates at Fórsa trade union’s conference in Killarney last week gave their unanimous backing to a motion calling for statutory paid leave for victims of domestic violence.