The new edition of IMPACT members’ magazine Work & Life looks at the emerging ‘sharing economy’ and assesses its potential impact on living standards and workers’ rights. The magazine is now on its way to workplaces and postal subscribers.

As websites and apps like Airbnb, Taskrabbit and Uber offer endless lines of products and services for rent, LUGHAN DEANE asks whether this high-tech menu is the key to a brave new world or just old fashioned exploitation. With workers encouraged to see themselves as independent service providers, and even sites offering friends for rent, he reckons it’s a good idea to read the small print.

Also in this edition of Work & Life, we take a look at the career cost of taking maternity leave and explore gender discrimination in workplace dress codes. And we talk to IMPACT’s new president Pat Fallon, branch activists in the IAESA aviation branch, and staff at the probation service community return programme.

DANIEL DEVERY talks about barbecues (in between those summer showers). And there’s the usual mix of music, movies, books, travel, news and competitions to while away the summertime tea break.

IMPACT members are being asked to take a moment to support a petition calling for improved working conditions for European transport workers. It only takes a minute to support the campaign by following this link and signing the petition.

The campaign is organised by Fair Transport Europe, a trade union-led initiative to protect and improve the conditions of workers who keep Europe connected, but whose pay and working conditions are worsening. It’s been launched under the EU’s European Citizens’ initiative, which obliges European institutions to act if enough signatures are collected from enough countries.

IMPACT national secretary Angela Kirk explained that Europe’s transport workers, including IMPACT members in aviation and other transport-related jobs, are being pushed to work harder, faster and for less, and with diminishing contractual safety nets.

“The objective is to put this issue on the European Commission agenda. We need 8,250 Irish signatures – and a million across the EU – to get the European Commission to make the necessary legislative proposals for fair transport with decent working conditions and good jobs. We’re asking IMPACT members to take part in this campaign, which gives them the chance to influence European transport policies in very real ways,” she said.

IMPACT is affiliated to the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF), which is leading the campaign. The federation represents more than 3.5 million transport workers from over 230 trade unions in over 40 countries. In its campaign literature, the federation says: “As long as we cannot send an apple, a pair of shoes or ourselves by email, we need the millions of transport workers who connect Europe. But working conditions in European transport are being challenged by a race to the bottom and unfair business practices by some companies, causing deplorable conditions for workers.”

The petition closes at the end of August. Ireland’s participation is being coordinated by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions. The Irish campaign has so far achieved 22% of its national threshold.

To support the campaign, visit Fair Transport Europe.

A meeting of IMPACT members hit by the closure of a Central Remedial Clinic (CRC) pension scheme will take place this week to consider their next steps after 93% of them backed industrial action in a ballot. Meanwhile, the union has won access to the scheme’s accounts, and its actuaries are expected to make a report on the state of its funding shortly.

IMPACT has asked its actuarial experts to make an independent assessment of the scheme and test the legal validity of its closure. Management claims the fund is carrying a €2.5 million deficit, but IMPACT believes the scheme is not in deficit to this extent.

IMPACT official Ian McDonnell said the union’s campaign would be informed by the outcome of its actuarial report. Management at the clinic had earlier refused the union access to the books, despite claiming that the scheme’s deficit was bad enough to justify closure of the fund.

The union has been in talks with CRC management since it collapsed the scheme when it stopped making payments last month. The contributory pension scheme covers almost 150 current and former staff who have over 1,000 years of service between them.

Staff who are members of the scheme have all been paying into it for a minimum of 15 years. They currently contribute 10% of their gross pay to the fund.

The Central Remedial Clinic is a national organisation for children and adults with a primary physical disabilities. Its pension fund has 44 active members (members currently employed by CRC and contributing to the fund), about 50 deferred members (former CRC staff who expect to receive some pension benefits when they retire), and about 50 retired members (who currently receive pensions from the scheme).

IMPACT is to demand a reversal of plans to amalgamate library services in 12 counties at a meeting of the Lansdowne Road Agreement Oversight Group, which is scheduled to take place on Wednesday week. This follows an 87% aggregate vote in favour of industrial action by library staff in the affected councils.

The union’s Local Government Divisional Executive Committee has said it will announce details of industrial action plans in the 13 affected local authorities if the Local Government Management Association - the national voice of local authority management – fails to give a satisfactory assurances that local councils will keep control of their library services at the Oversight Group meeting next week.

IMPACT says proposals to amalgamate library services threaten local provision as library budgets come under increasing pressure. The local authorities affected are Carlow, Cavan, Cork City, Cork County, Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Longford, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo and Westmeath.

Local needs

IMPACT says the proposals, drawn up by a Dublin-based planning group, took little account of local needs and failed to include a cost-benefit analysis. The union says neither staff nor local elected representatives have been properly consulted on the initiative, which has no statutory basis and could herald the end of local decision-making on library services.

There are also concerns over the impact of the proposals on staffing and career structures, and the possible relocation of staff across county boundaries.

IMPACT national secretary Peter Nolan said the ballot result reflected the depth of feeling among library staff about the amalgamation threat. “Industrial action is the avenue of last resort. Local libraries are vital social hubs in rural and urban communities that have already lost shops, garda stations, post offices and other local amenities.

“We can’t allow our thriving library system to be to be gutted on foot of a remote number-crunching exercise, which doesn’t reflect local needs or the realities of community life.”

Separately, staff in Dún Laoghaire Rathdown’s library service have voted overwhelmingly in favour of industrial action in response to a lack of recruitment and a management proposal to open on Sundays on a staff-less basis. Read more here.

Believe it or not, it’s still legal for employers to insist that female employees wear high heels at work. This is despite the fact that a large body of medical research has proven that years of daily wear can cause irreversible health problems.

WHEN 27-year-old Nicola Thorp arrived for her first day as a receptionist at the London offices of Price Waterhouse Coopers she was sent home because she was wearing (formal) flat shoes, rather than high heels. The media picked up on her story after she posted about her experience online.

Around the same time, a Canadian woman named Nicola Gavins posted a photograph of her blood–soaked tights on Facebook. Gavins, who worked as a waitress in Edmonton, sustained her injuries because she was obliged to wear high heels at work. The post went viral and was shared almost 13,000 times.

Petition

Capitalising on the media and public attention, Thorp set up a petition online calling on the UK’s parliament to “make it illegal for a company to require that women wear high heels at work”. The petition was signed by 142,539 people, enough to ensure that the matter is debated by MPs.

Part of the petition process involved collecting testimony from members of the public affected by this issue. Some of the online submissions make for harrowing reading in 2016. The following quotations are all taken from the public submissions (available at parliament.uk/high-heels-petition-forum).

I'm no stranger to blood soaked tights – ‘Charlotte’

Many of the 730 submissions detail the damage that constant wearing of high heels can do. ‘Mia Haughton’ says that “after busy days” it was “hard to even walk home”. A number of the posts talk about high heeled shoes leading to bleeding. ‘Tecla Vilona’ says “every girl bled. I still have scars, and bled minimum of once weekly”. ‘Rags’, meanwhile, writes that “we were supposed to wear nude tights, which I had to throw away regularly as I couldn't get the blood stains out”.

Much of the testimony relates to the long-term health effects of wearing high heels every day. A number of the posts describe irreversible, permanent damage. ‘Jane Baines- Holmes’, for example, writes that she now has “very slow healing Morton's neuromas,” a condition caused by trapped nerves in the foot.

Wearing high heels every day at work also gives rise to a whole range of physical safety issues. In her submission, for example, ‘Elizabeth’ says she remembers “wobbling around on [high heels] especially on the fire escapes, during a fire drill”.

I've been terminated because of this issue of high heels – ‘Vanessa’

A number of women write in their submissions about the feeling of being objectified. ‘Sarah Saunders’, for example, writes that her boss “said that [she] was there to be aesthetically pleasing”. ‘Jane’, meanwhile, recalls feeling that her boss “was using [her] as a piece of meat to win a contract”.

Numerous posts on the petition’s page talk about the implications that looks and dress have on a woman’s career prospects. A shocking number of posts describe being fired or passed over for promotion as a result of failing to wear high heels. ‘Elizabeth’ recalls that when she said she would not be able to manage four hours of serving drinks in heels, she “was sacked on the spot.”

Challenge

A sense emerged from the public testimony that women who dared to challenge the high heel requirement were not likely to be met with much understanding. A few of the posts recall that, when a complaint was lodged, management’s response was to suggest the complainant resign. ‘Emma’, for example, recalls that her “query was met with a reminder of the company’s strict policy and a 'quip' that I could rest my feet all I wanted if I became unemployed”. Similarly, a post under the name MRS_SJ says that she has “previously challenged this to be told it's my choice where I work and I could choose to work somewhere that doesn't require me to wear heels”.

Although many organisations won’t fire women who do not wear high heels, they find other ways to register their dis- content.

‘Alison’, for example, says that “high heels have a positive impact on how well you're regarded and how likely you are to progress”. ‘Cat’, meanwhile, remembers that “on starting as a graduate trainee we were advised that if we did not wear high heels and makeup we should not expect to succeed in our careers”. ‘Kim Farrington’ remembers how she “could not walk at speed and male colleagues would often stride into meetings leaving [her] trailing behind. This left an impression that as a female manager [she] was always a step behind”.

Thompsons says that “an employer can dismiss someone fairly for refusing to comply” with a dress code, provided it is reasonable. However the employee must “have been given prior warnings and adequate time to comply”.

The law firm also claims that employers can “treat men and women differently”, provided they don’t treat one of the sexes more favourably.

Parliamentary inquiry

Following the success of the petition, a series of parlia- mentary hearings took place in June. MPs on the Petitions and Women and Equalities Committees heard testimonies from a number of the women who had contributed to the forum, including Nicola Torp, as well as employers and the TUC’s women’s equality officer, Scarlet Harris.

The aim of the inquiry is to gain a clear understanding of what the current law says about the issue and how it is affecting people. Committee inquiries can, but do not always, lead to reports that make specific recommendations to the Government. What’s clear is that Nicola and all of the women who contributed their experience to the petition have laid down a timely challenge to antiquated ideas about dress codes at work

The contracts cover the provision of two free years of childcare, which parents can access under the state-funded Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) scheme. Earlier this month, IMPACT supported an Association of Childcare Professionals demonstration over the late arrival of the contracts and the summer lay-off of thousands of early years’ staff because the Government scheme restricts funding to 38 weeks of the year.

The two organisations, which work jointly on behalf of early years’ professionals, used the event to highlight the importance of early childhood education and care, as well as the vital role played by early childhood professionals in supporting children and families.

IMPACT deputy general secretary Kevin Callinan said the Government’s inept handling of the scheme means experienced staff are being laid off, while childcare providers’ ability to meet demand for free childcare under ECCE is being compromised.

“Thousands of skilled and experienced early years’ professionals are being forced out of work for the summer because the Government only funds early years’ services for 38 weeks. That’s no use to parents, who need care for their children 52 weeks of the year. And it is totally unacceptable to the dedicated staff who will either have no income or depend on social welfare this summer,” he said.

Kevin wrote to Minister for Children and Youth Affairs Katherine Zappone to urge her to act quickly on the issue. The contracts issued soon after.

IMPACT has written to all Oireachtas members about the ongoing challenges facing special education needs organisers (SENOs) due to reduced staff numbers and growing demand for the services they provide to schools.

The SENO service is integral to the planning of the academic year for each school and the careful management of the overall SNA (special needs assistant) allocations. IMPACT national secretary Andy Pike has outlined to TDs and senators the growing pressures they face.

In his letter, Andy says: “The National Council for Special Education was instructed to reduce staff numbers over the period 2011-2014 under the Employment Control Framework. During this period the numbers of SENOs fell from the previously authorised number of 98 to 76 at the end of 2014. To date, the fall in SENO numbers is just over 20%.

“While this has led to an increase in the volume of work for each SENO, it also left some counties without a SENO. This diminishes the original premise for the NCSE, in which SENOs were to provide a local service, with knowledge of schools, parents and agencies in their area.  

“These reductions, and their knock-on effects, have occurred against a backdrop of changes to the resource and SNA allocation process, expansion of the SENO role and most significantly, increased demand for services, due to increased numbers of applications from schools for students with disabilities and special educational needs. 

“The increasing number of children with special educational needs requiring the service also brings with it an increase in the number of concerned parents with whom we interact.”

Andy added that SENOs are a very committed group of professionals who are working above and beyond in order to ensure that, as far as possible, our service users do not suffer. He added: ”As a result of the significant staff reductions, and the huge increase in demand for the service that we provide, SENOs have been to struggling to provide an adequate and appropriate service to students with special education needs, their parents and the schools.”

In 2010, and 2014, SENO staff were surveyed and asked if they ever worked beyond their contracted hours. Results indicated that, despite an increase in the hours worked per week in 2014 (as per the Haddington Road Agreement), significantly more staff were working in excess of their contracted hours in 2014 than had been the case in 2010. This is a clear reflection of the increasing demand for service as well as decreasing numbers of staff available to provide that service.

Oireachtas members were supplied with a comprehensive briefing document to show how the ECF has affected the SENO service, with IMPACT’s projections of the increased demand for services that SENOs are facing.

Andy’s correspondence to the Oireachtas, including the comprehensive briefing document, is available HERE.

IMPACT has succeeded in its campaign to keep the operation of the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme in public hands after local government management agreed that Limerick city and county council will administer the programme on behalf of all local authorities.

There were fears that the work, which was transferred from the Department of Social Protection last year, would be outsourced. IMPACT argued against this, and now the Local Government Management Association has confirmed to the union that HAP will be provided in-house by direct labour as a shared service.

HAP is a rent support scheme where local authorities make payments directly to landlords and the tenant pays a smaller contribution – based on income and ability to pay – to the local authority. Roughly 150 people are employed to deliver the service.

In this week’s IMPACT blog, LUGHAN DEANE looks at what’s really at stake when we talk about the proposed trade agreement that’s mysteriously referred to as TTIP. Does it really matter if this transatlantic trade deal, between the US and the EU, goes ahead?

Read the blog here

Ireland’s two top industrial relations bodies will be led by new faces with the appointment of Kevin Foley as the chairman of the Labour Court and Oonagh Buckley as the director general of the Workplace Relations Commission. This follows the recent retirement of Kieran Mulvey and Kevin Duffy from the top jobs at the WRC and Labour Court, respectively.

Kevin Foley is currently a deputy chairman of the Labour Court and was previously the director of conciliation at the Labour Relations Commission, which was recently subsumed by the WRC. He has been involved in labour affairs in Ireland for over 30 years.

Oonagh Buckley is currently the assistant secretary responsible for pay and pensions at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER). She has led the employers’ side in all the major public service pay and industrial relations negotiations of recent years.

The WRC, which is the first point of access for industrial relations and employment rights issues, has been involved in virtually every high profile dispute in recent years. The Labour Court is the body that deals with appeals when other industrial relations procedures are exhausted.

IMPACT members working at Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown’s library service have voted for industrial action in response to a lack of recruitment and management proposals to open a staffless library service on Sundays.

IMPACT official Dessie Robinson said the ballot had taken place in response to a failure by management to offer proposals to deal with an acute staffing crisis in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, which continues to affect the library service.

“Since 2003, staffing levels have fallen by 30%, while opening hours have been extended. This has restricted access to unpaid family friendly arrangements for IMPACT members, including work sharing and access to annual leave, because of the additional demands to keep the service running,” he said.

Dessie added that the ballot followed a long process during which the local IMPACT branch had argued for additional staff.

Staffless library

Management recently announced its intentions to open the dlr LexIcon on a staffless basis on Sundays from next month. Dessie added: “Members voted not to cooperate with this or any other changes to opening hours. There’s been no agreement in relation to plans for staffless libraries at a national level, and members in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown have voted to oppose any attempts to open the Lexicon on a staffless basis.”

The divisional executive committee of IMPACT’s Local Government and Local Services division has sanctioned the industrial action. The ballot paper sought members’ support for industrial action, up to and including strike action, on both issues.

Separately, staff in 13 local authorities have voted in favour of industrial action in opposition to proposals to amalgamate a number of library services. Read more here