THE Irish trade union leaders are currently deciding whether to accept state control of their public sector trade unions, including control over wages, conditions and even the length of the working day, or fight the attempt to impose a dictatorship of the bankers imposed by the Fine Gael- Labour Party coalition, to make the working class pay for the crisis caused by the bankers and bosses.
Previously the union leaders had pledged a ‘Labour War’ response, but since those fiery words were spoken, many of the bureaucrats have run for cover.
The public sector union, CPSU’s Executive Committee meeting yesterday decided, after a detailed debate on the text of the so-called Haddington Road Proposals and the FEMPI legislation now before the Oireachtas, to recommend a No vote to members in a ballot in the coming weeks.
Its statement said: ‘The Executive Committee considered the position of the union in the light of the known positions of other Public Service Unions and in the context of the strong rejection by our members of the Croke Park 2 Proposals (87% no on a poll of 82%) views the changes contained in the revised set of proposals to be more “tweaking” than a substantial roll back by Government.
‘The Executive Committee reaffirmed the union’s view that the Governments’ economic strategy underpinning the demand to cut one billion euros is unnecessary and unfair to the lower-paid worker.
‘In particular the failure to address the additional hours and the ‘banking’ of those hours to do away with overtime was seen as a major impediment to any positive recommendation of the outcome of the recent LRC talks for our 12,000 Clerical Officers and Staff Officers in the Civil Service.
‘The threat of FEMPI and the longer term attack it represents on collective bargaining by unions with the employer both in the public and potentially the private sector was criticised strongly.
‘Specifically the Executive Committee views the legislation as a callous attack on the voluntarist process of industrial relations practiced in this State since the 1940s.
‘The Executive Committee was critical of the Government, including the Labour Party, for seeking to introduce such draconian anti-collective bargaining legislation now and called on all TDs in the centenary year of 1913 to refuse to vote for the legislation when it comes before the Dáil.
‘The Executive Committee will meet next week to agree the ballot paper to be sent to members on June 10th in a ballot to be completed by Wednesday June 26th. The ballot paper will set out detailed pros and cons for voting Yes or No to the draft agreement. Specifically the ballot will illustrate in clear terms for members the implications of voting either way in the context of the FEMPI legislation.
‘A decision on whether or not to ballot on industrial action will be taken by the Executive Committee subsequent to the outcome of the ballot becoming known on June 26th.’
Meanwhile, the National Executive Council of SIPTU has recommended the proposals for public service pay and reform which emerged following weeks of negotiations at the Labour Relations Commission.
It stated: ‘The Haddington Road Agreement sets out details of new pay and working conditions across the health, local authority, education and state agency sectors of the public service, which if agreed by trade union members, will come into effect until 2016 from 1st July next.
‘A ballot of SIPTU members in the public service has commenced and will continue for three weeks until 19th June.
‘A document explaining the proposals and containing the complete Haddington Road Agreement published by the LRC will be circulated to the 65,000 members of union employed in the public service.
‘Following a lengthy meeting on Thursday 23rd May, the NEC decided to recommend the proposals on the basis that they preserve the protections against compulsory redundancy, outsourcing and redeployment in excess of 45 kilometres contained in the original Croke Park Agreement while providing a security of income during a continuing period of economic uncertainty.
‘A new centralised agreement would also maintain the entitlement of public service workers to a say in the reform process, the NEC argued. While they involve pain through loss of income and increased working hours for many members in the public service the NEC believes that, at this time, tens of thousands of lower paid workers, in particular, are best served by supporting the proposals.
‘They optimise the potential for generating savings through progressive measures such as the replacement of agency staff with directly employed workers.
‘Meanwhile, they address key concerns in relation to premium pay and overtime rates as well as the organisation of working time for members on less than 65,000 euros per annum, to the greatest possible degree. Simultaneously they provide for the payment of increments and clarity as to when temporarily reduced pay rates will be reinstated for those who are paid between 65,000 euros and 105,000 euros per annum, the NEC said.
‘It warned that any attempt by the Government to legislate to effect cuts unilaterally in the event of rejection of the proposals would lead immediately to a ballot for industrial action and for strike action by the union.’
The INMO union has also recommended acceptance.
‘As previously advised, the Organisation’s Executive Council met on Tuesday, 28th May 2013, to consider, in detail, the new proposals, on public service pay, which have been given the title of “The Haddington Road Agreement”.
‘The INMO Executive Council, following a detailed examination of the new proposals and the wider environment, has decided to recommend acceptance of the new proposals in a nationwide ballot which will take place over the next three weeks (approximately).
‘In reaching its decision the Executive Council took a number of factors into consideration including the following:
‘1. As previously stated, the INMO’s earlier decision, to oppose the previous proposals, was wholly correct, in the best interests of members and has led to this new set of proposals which are significantly better, in a number of areas, for nurses and midwives.
‘2. One of the primary reasons for seeking the rejection of the earlier proposals was that they contained pay proposals which were wholly disproportionate, and permanent, with regard to shift workers who have a five over seven obligation.
‘This threat has been removed, in the new proposals, as double pay, on a Sunday/Public Holiday, has been maintained (instead of being reduced to time plus three-quarters) which means that a permanent pay cut of over 7% will no longer apply.
‘3. The INMO also argued against the previous proposals on the basis that they were overtly discriminatory particularly in relation to female workers, seeking to maintain a work/life balance, and those who had a caring obligation.
‘In the new proposals this threat has been removed as all flexitime working (part-time) arrangements, for existing and future entrants in nursing and midwifery, will be maintained, and unaffected, by acceptance of these proposals.
‘4. The pay reductions, for all public servants who earn over 65,000 euros and less than 100,000 euros, while still forming part of the new proposals have been somewhat mitigated. Importantly delayed incremental progression, together with definite dates to fully restore the pay cuts, are contained within the new proposals.
‘5. The real potential now exists to avoid the loss of the twilight payment (time plus one-sixth) arising from savings which can be identified, with regard to NCHD overtime working, through the transfer of certain tasks, from doctors to nurses/midwives, subject to additional nursing/midwifery hours being allocated.
‘6. The restoration of the Senior Staff Nurse grade, together with implementation of the Long Term Actors agreement, will result in a significant number of INMO members, securing either a 5% pay increase or confirmation of permanency in a higher grade as part of the new proposals.
‘7. Improvements in the optional graduate placement programme which, while still remaining very unsatisfactory, are better than what was previously proposed.
‘8. The increase in the working week for nurses and midwives, while a major negative and a backward step, has been mitigated through the introduction of the following:
* any member can remain on their existing hours with an appropriate pay adjustment;
* all existing flexitime arrangements will be maintained;
* an individual’s specific circumstances must be taken into account; and
* the increase in the working week will be reviewed after three years.
‘It should be noted that all other public servants, who currently work a 35-hour week or less, are having their working week increased to 37 hours which is a minimum of a two-hour increase.
‘9. Another factor, in the Council’s consideration, is the reality that a number of trade unions/organisations, who previously rejected the earlier proposals or with whom we forged an alliance, have now welcomed the new proposals and/or are also recommending acceptance. The Executive Council is keenly aware that, throughout this whole process, INMO members have repeatedly said that they do not wish to be isolated and our policy has always been that any industrial action would only be taken as part of a public sector-wide campaign.
‘10. Finally it is now quite apparent that rejection of these new proposals would see the government introduce, through legislation, the following:
* permanent pay cuts for those earning over 65,000 euros;
* a three-year incremental freeze for all public servants; and
* devolved power, to every Minister, to introduce, through circular letter/ regulation, increased working hours and reductions in other conditions of employment including premium pay and other non-core pay.
‘In this context the Executive Council must advise that rejection of these proposals would see the government introduce more draconian cuts through legislation. This, in turn, would require the INMO to ballot for industrial action, possibly to be taken on our own, to seek the restoration of existing terms and conditions of employment in an environment where we could be isolated/ marginalised from the vast majority of our fellow public service trade unions.
‘It is for the foregoing, and other, reasons that the Executive Council has taken the decision to recommend acceptance of these new proposals. It is also the view of the Executive Council that, at the end of this three-year agreement, the INMO, as it has in the past, can lead the campaign to secure a 37- hour week, bringing parity with our health professional colleagues, and begin the process of seeking pay increases as the economy improves.’
However once the handcuffs have been slipped on they will not be removed voluntarily.
The only principled course for the Irish trade unions to take is to reject the Haddington Road proposals and to call an indefinite general strike to remove the Fine Gael-Labour coalition, and bring in a Workers and Small Farmers government and Socialism.