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The Union of Students in Ireland (USI) has launched a ‘talk to your TD’ initiative as part of its ongoing ‘#EducationIs’ campaign against further increases in third level fees. IMPACT and several other trade unions are supporting the USI’s effort, and the union is asking its members in all sectors to contact their local TDs about third level fees.

To make it easy, the USI has provided several letter templates on its website:

• one for the parents or guardians of third level students
• one for those working in third level institutions
• one for students themselves
• one for second-level students
• one for grandparents of students
• one for alumni or graduates
• one for second-level teachers.

This correspondence campaign comes after last month’s huge ‘#EducationIs’ demonstration, where the chair of IMPACT’s Education Division spoke to a crowd of thousands. Gina O'Brien said: We fully support the USI’s position on no return of fees and no student loans. We see students struggling to get by financially. A return of fees would cripple students. No young person should go out into the world with a debt hanging around their neck.“IMPACT fully supports the USI’s position on no return of fees and no student loans. We see students struggling to get by financially. A return of fees would cripple students. No young person should go out into the world with a debt hanging around their neck.”

IMPACT members and officials were among acrowd of several hundred who gathered outside Leinster House to protest at the Government’s chronic underinvestment in early years’ services earlier this month. IMPACT’s deputy general secretary Kevin Callinan told demonstrators that the protest was about fairness for workers, parents and children hoping to avail of early years’ provision.

IMPACT’s Kevin Callinan addressed protesters.

Kevin said fairness would only come about once the Government agreed to treat early years’ services as a public good. “No one questions why a child of five years of age goes to school and is taught by people who enjoy proper conditions of employment. But in early years’ things are different. How is it okay to bring children, in their most formative years, into a system that does not prioritise quality or professionalisation?” he asked.

IMPACT is campaigning with the Association of Childcare Professionals for professional recognition for workers in the sector. “We’re getting organised, we’re building momentum, and we’re coming for fair pay,” Kevin said.

The campaign is calling on renters to lobby their local representatives to support the call for rent increases to be linked to inflation. It also wants an end to landlords’ ability to evict tenants in order to sell their properties. And it says four-year leases should be turned into indefinite leases. 

The campaign, which is supported by IMPACT and other trade unions, hopes to put pressure on housing minister Simon Coveney in advance of the publication of the Government’s rental strategy, which is expected next week.

A bill, which would give effect to the core campaign demands, is to be debated in the Dáil this week. The campaign also has been working with senators and policy experts to draft supporting amendments to the Residential Tenancies Bill, which is currently going through the Seanad.

IMPACT lead organiser Joe O’Connor said: “We would encourage all activists to contact their local TDs, particularly those in Government or Fianna Fáil, to outline why we need secure rents and ask them to support the bill on Wednesday.”

See also: SecureRents.com #SecureRents #RentersArise

IMPACT has suspended its industrial action at Our Lady of Lourdes hospital following successful negotiations that yielded a number of permanent clerical posts. The union’s north-east official Ray Ryan said most of the improvements sought by members had been agreed in principle.

Clerical and admin staff at the Drogheda hospital had previously escalated their industrial action in the dispute over staff cuts that had closed the hospital’s health promotion department.

One immediate effect of the agreement is that the health promotion unit is now due to reopen. In addition, IMPACT and management have agreed that 27 clerical and administrative posts are to be made permanent. The deal will see all current temporary posts remain in place pending the outcome of a review, as well as the filling of additional permanent posts.

Management will also agree the terms of reference and timeframe for the review with the union. Ray said subsequent discussions at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) meant written confirmation of the agreed measures is expected shortly.

“We’re happy with the outcome of the negotiations as we achieved the vast majority of what we were looking for, including agreement on four posts to cover short-term absences. The industrial action is now suspended pending implementation of what was agreed in the WRC,” he said.

Ray paid tribute to the IMPACT members and branch activists for their support. “Without the resolve and efforts of our members and activists we would not have made this progress. Everyone was focused on achieving this outcome, and our members are to be commended for achieving this result,” he said. 

IMPACT communications officer Niall Shanahan joined a panel discussion on the topic of artificial intelligence as part of Science Week earlier this month. The Science Gallery in Dublin hosted a series of talks, The End is Nigh, exploring contemporary scientific and technological developments that pose an existential threat to the human race.

Left to right: Anton Savage; Barry O'Sullivan; Niall Shanahan; Mary Aiken and CJ Cullen

He joined Professor Barry O’Sullivan, deputy president of the European Association for Artificial Intelligence, Mary Aiken, forensic cyber-psychologist and Lieutenant Colonel CJ Cullen, deputy director of the defence force’s communications corps. Niall was invited to reflect on the implications of artificial intelligence and automation for workers and trade unions.

He said: “In terms of imagining a future where artificial intelligence is part of the labour market, we have to answer some questions. For example, where is AI best applied? There are certain human interactions that we know we do not want displaced, and people will always seek quality human interactions."

Niall added that replacing workers has a very high social cost that’s difficult to calculate in advance. It was in this context that Niall brought up IMPACT’s resistance to staffless libraries. He said the proposal to replace librarians with machines would have social effects that would only become apparent in years to come.

The panel was hosted by Today FM’s Anton Savage and is available to view on the Science Gallery’s Facebook page.

IMPACT was among the many organisations that strongly supported the Public Service Pay Commission (PSPC) chair Kevin Duffy when he came under fire from garda associations for his comments about the legality of their recently-threatened strike.

IMPACT’s head of communications Bernard Harbor said Mr Duffy was a man of integrity and independence, who had the full confidence of public and private sector unions because of his impartiality and unrivalled expertise in industrial relations. Bernard said public service unions would object if there were any suggestion of replacing Mr Duffy in his role as PSPC chair.

A former bricklayer and ICTU official, Mr Duffy was chair of the Labour Court for many years and adjudicated on a large number of cases involving IMPACT members. Support for him came from a wide range of political figures and industrial relations organisations.

Hear Bernard Harbor on RTÉ’s News at One.

The 2017 IMPACT desk-top calendars and wall planners are currently being packed and should be distributed to branch secretaries by Friday 2^nd December.

Public service unions are awaiting a Government decision on whether to open negotiations on accelerated pay restoration after the ICTU Public Services Committee (PSC) met on 16^th November and agreed to reconvene at an early date to consider developments. IMPACT general secretary Shay Cody and other PSC officers have maintained contact with senior officials in the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform over the last two weeks, and it is believed that Minister Pascal Donohoe may make a statement on the matter in the next week or so.

Meanwhile, an opinion poll in yesterday’s Sunday Business Post revealed that a clear majority of the public supports an increase in public service pay, even if this reduces the scope for tax reductions.

At the ICTU PSC meeting earlier this month, all affiliates reaffirmed their intention to take a collective approach to public service pay and related issues. The committee, which is chaired by IMPACT leader Shay Cody, is made up of senior officials from unions that together represent the vast bulk of public servants.

IMPACT has called for early negotiations and clarity about the process and timetable for addressing the need for accelerated pay restoration. The union has told Minister Donohoe and his officials that the Lansdowne Road Agreement will be quickly undermined unless this happens.

The minister continues to express his support for a public-service wide agreement, and has acknowledged the need to address the wider public service implications of the Labour Court recommendations in the Garda dispute. But so far he has fallen short of conceding the early negotiation that unions have sought.

The Red C opinion poll, carried out last week and published by the Sunday Business Post yesterday (27^th November), found that 62% of voters support full public sector pay restoration even if it means a lower cut to the universal social charge (USC). Another 48% said they were willing to fund public sector pay restoration even if it meant lower spending on infrastructure, while a similar percentage backed pay restoration if it meant a lower spend on public services.

In its coverage, the Sunday Business Post said this was a sign that support for public sector pay restoration “is much deeper than had been previously thought.” Surprisingly, support also cuts across all social classes.

The poll results come after weeks of public debate on pay restoration in the wake of the Labour Court recommendations in the Garda dispute. IMPACT has been making the case for early negotiations on a successor to the Lansdowne Road Agreement, and on the need for accelerated pay restoration.

Although public support can switch quickly, and shouldn’t be taken for granted, the latest poll suggests that IMPACT and other unions are successfully making the case for accelerated pay restoration.

Read the ICTU Public Services Committee statement.

Watch IMPACT communications chief Bernard Harbor on the RTÉ 6.01 news.

IMPACT is continuing to pursue a number of pay claims in the private sector as the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) recommends that private sector unions pursue pay claims of 4% for 2017. The Congress Private Sector Committee said a 4% rise should mean increases of at least €1,000 a year for workers across the sector.

The chair of the committee, John Douglas, said that all relevant data showed that labour costs had fallen in recent years, while productivity had risen and profits had increased. Yet wages have remained flat. Douglas said wage increases represented the most effective manner in which to stimulate an increase in economic activity.

Stagnant

Meanwhile, the latest blog (published today), from the union-backed Nevin Economic Research Institute (NERI) sees Tom Healy address what he calls the Irish economy’s “dirty little secret.” Drawing on an EU survey of earnings, working hours and employers’ social insurance costs, he shows that average weekly earnings in Ireland have remained static since 2008.

The latest CSO figures show that average weekly earnings were €701.87 in the third quarter of 2016, a rise of 1.2% (up from €693.57) over the previous year. Average weekly earnings grew by 1.8% in the private sector and by 1% in the public service including semi-state companies. 

Breakthrough

IMPACT and other unions made a significant breakthrough on pay restoration this month as the Shannon Airport Authority confirmed that full, permanent and early restoration of basic pay, due to be paid in December, will mark an end to the pay cuts applied under the employer’s ‘cost recovery agreement’. The payment will be backdated to 1^st January 2016 to ensure a full year’s restoration in 2016.

Elsewhere, IMPACT and other unions are continuing to engage with Aer Lingus in formal discussions on pay restoration. The talks, aimed at achieving the resumption of normal pay movement from April 2017, concern all staff at the airline with the exception of pilots, who are covered by a separate pay agreement.

Éamonn said the creation of the clerical and administrative panels is a very welcome development, as it is crucial to grow the capacity of health services at a time of growing demand. “IMPACT fought hard for these recruitment measures against a background of continuing noise about our health services being over-populated with administrators.

“It is one of the enduring myths about health services but one that we’ve successfully overcome both nationally and locally, such as the recent dispute at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda,” he said.

Community healthcare organisation talks

Meanwhile, IMPACT has accepted an invitation from the HSE to commence bilateral negotiations on Community Healthcare Organisation (CHO) structures. Negotiations commence tomorrow (Tuesday 29th November).

Éamonn explained that a consultative forum, established to negotiate CHO structures, has ceased activity for the moment. “This is because some of the other unions involved in the forum have indicated that they’re not in a position to participate while outstanding issues under the Lansdowne Road Agreement remain,” he said.

Éamonn explained that IMPACT had expressed its desire to get to the negotiating table as soon as possible, in order to provide clarity and certainty to the grades represented by the union about the new structures. He said tomorrow’s initial meeting will be aimed at setting out the parameters and scope of the discussions.

Ballot results from local branches, which were available as this bulletin went to press, indicated that library staff have voted overwhelmingly in favour of industrial action in the support of IMPACT’s campaign against ‘staffless’ library services. The union says management proposals for 23 additional staffless pilots will lead to poorer services and job losses.

Once the ballot results are fully collated, the union will be set to serve notice of industrial action on the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA), which represents local authority employers.

IMPACT called the ballot in response to management plans for a large-scale pilot of after-hours staffless services, which staff fear will ultimately lead to completely staffless libraries with sharply limited services to the public.

Sean Reid, Cathaoirleach of IMPACT’s Local Government and Local Services Division, said there were also widespread fears about health and safety protections for library users and workers, and the possible erosion of staff terms and conditions. “We know that local authorities treat libraries as a Cinderella service and, if staffless services are deemed an option, councils will inevitably seek further savings by extending unstaffed services into core opening times,” he said.

IMPACT says the extension of staffless arrangements will leave library users unable to get assistance from trained and qualified staff, or benefit from cultural and educational events. IMPACT says this would hit less advantaged communities and individuals hardest, because wealthier and better educated groups generally need less help and can afford to pay for more cultural and educational experiences.

A previous pilot in three locations demonstrated that the vast majority of users continued to visit libraries during core, staffed hours.

IMPACT national secretary Peter Nolan said: “This initiative is a sinister plan to cut costs and services under the guise of extending opening hours. Our libraries remain critically underfunded and nobody seriously believes local authorities will resist the temptation to save more cash by replacing staffed hours with the much more limited range of services available on a staffless basis.

“This will short-change communities. There’ll be no school visits, no storytelling, no help to find what you want, no security presence, and none of the hundreds of educational and artistic events that libraries provide throughout the year. Everyone will lose out, especially the elderly, students and people from disadvantaged communities and backgrounds. Meanwhile, management’s own data from the initial three pilots clearly demonstrates that the vast majority of us prefer to visit our local library during core hours when expert staff are there to help.”

IMPACT’s innovative INSPIRE training programme got underway at a special event in Dublin earlier this month. The programme, which prepares and encourages women in IMPACT to run for election to branch, divisional and national committees, attracted some 40 activists from across Ireland.

The union developed the training in response to the relatively low participation of women in the union’s local and national committees. While 75% of IMPACT members are female, women account for just 22% of members of the union’s central executive committee. Women make up a similar proportion of industrial staff, while only one of the union’s eight most senior staff members is female.

There is a mixed picture on IMPACT’s divisional executive committees, where female participation ranges from 5% to 70%. At local level, women currently fill almost 50% of branch chair, secretary and treasurer posts across the country.

The INSPIRE training day was addressed by Congress general secretary Patricia King, who shared her own experiences and emphasised the importance of hard work and treating people with respect. IMPACT vice president Margaret Coughlan also spoke to delegates.

Training presentations were delivered by Hannah Deasy and Una Power from Women for Election, Dr Shirley Graham, and communications specialist Orlaith Carmody.

IMPACT lead organisers Linda Kelly and Julie Healy said the training programme was an empowering and energising experience for everyone involved.

Linda added: “There’s never been a training event like this in the history of IMPACT. Three-quarters of the union’s members are women and, while we have seen some growth in female participation, we need to encourage more women to get involved and give them the necessary tools to do so.”

In IMPACT’s latest guest blog, Una Power of Women for Election writes about the INSPIRE training workshop.

See our infographic on female participation in IMPACT.