Lunchtime protests at minister's Donegal office over Community Employment supervisors dispute

Community Employment (CE) supervisors have begun a series of protests at the office of education minister Joe McHugh.

CE supervisors held a protest outside the Donegal TD's constituency office in Letterkenny on Wednesday lunchtime. They say they will be continuing the protests right up until the election on February 8. 

Trade union Siptu says the dispute concerns the failure of the Government to implement a Labour Court recommendation regarding their right to a pension.

CE Supervisors, who are members of Siptu and Fórsa trade unions, have voted in favour of industrial action by 91% in a ballot counted on January 24 in Liberty Hall, Dublin.  

Siptu Sector Organiser Eddie Mullins said: “CE Supervisors have voted for industrial action which will involve their withdrawal of co-operation with government departments, state agencies and local authorities. The result of the ballot also gives a mandate for the escalation of the industrial action to include 24, 48 or 72-hour work stoppages and the placing of pickets.”

 “CE supervisors play a key role in the provision of much-needed community services such as Community creches/Playschool, meals on wheels, upkeep of Community/Sports halls, Resource Centres, upkeep of Rugby, GAA and soccer pitches, Tidy Towns support and maintenance of green areas around the country.

Fórsa Assistant General Secretary, Ian McDonnell, said: “There is considerable anger among CE Supervisors concerning their treatment by the Government after more than a decade of waiting for the 2008 Labour Court recommendation regarding their pension rights to be implemented. Representatives of the workers received a commitment from the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Regina Doherty, in May 2019 that the pension issue would be dealt with. This led them to suspend planned industrial action at that time.

 “Unfortunately, the minister failed to live up to her commitment due to the refusal of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to provide the funding necessary for the Government to implement the Labour Court recommendation. This situation has led the vast majority of CE Supervisors to believe they have been left with no option but to implement a major escalation of their long-running campaign.”