New legislation can help workers and unions
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ICTU general secretary David Begg has said proposed new collective bargaining legislation was the “most significant development” in his 35 years as a trade union activist. Speaking at IMPACT’s conference in Killarney, he said it would give unions an opportunity to improve pay and working conditions for thousands of exploited workers who are not now members of unions.
But he said it was enabling legislation, and workers would only benefit if unions took the opportunity by recruiting and organising workers who aren’t in unions.
IMPACT general secretary Shay Cody agreed, saying that the new legislation would allow the Labour Court to impose improved pay and conditions on employers who refuse to recognise unions and pay below the going rate. He also said it contained valuable new safeguards against employer victimisation of those who joined unions.
“If we can’t use this legislation to entice people to join unions to improve their terms and conditions, then we’re not doing our job,” he said.
Mr Begg said union efforts to attract new members were hampered by the complexity of the Irish trade union structure and the number of unions competing for members. He outlined ICTU plans to “reimagine” the Irish trade union movement to make it more effective and more attractive to workers.
Mr Begg said better structures would also help unions win support for alternatives to austerity. “Our task is to organise people into unions, interpret the world for them, and give them the means to change it,” he said.
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