SIPTU representatives are calling on childcare employers to restart pay talks after an unacceptable proposal for a rate of €13.65 per hour for qualified Early Years Educators was made at the Joint Labour Committee (JLC) yesterday (25th September). — ​SIPTU Head of Strategic Organising, Darragh O’Connor, said: “SIPTU has consistently said that a minimum rate of €13.65 is unacceptable to our members and indeed to many employers.

The ICTU group of unions representing health and community workers, employed in community and voluntary sector agencies funded by the HSE and other state agencies, have announced today (Monday) that indefinite strike action, in several selected employments nationwide, is to commence from Tuesday 17th October next. — The union group, led by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), said the strike action will involve thousands of health and community workers in a variety of grades and in multiple locations, bringing services to a halt.

The Labour Court has invited both parties in the GMC Civil and Mechanical Engineering strike to a hearing which will take place next Monday, October 2nd. — SIPTU has replied positively to the Labour Court’s invitation and its request that industrial action be suspended in order to allow the Court to hear the dispute and issue recommendations. Following a meeting of the SIPTU strike committee in GMC Civil and Mechanical Engineering this afternoon, pickets will be lifted…

SIPTU representatives have today demanded that childcare employers restart pay talks for 26,000 Early Years professionals ahead of a crunch meeting of the Early Years Joint Labour Committee (JLC) next Monday (26th September) in Lansdowne House, Dublin. — SIPTU Head of Strategic Organising, Darragh O’Connor, said: “The low pay epidemic in the sector has caused a major staffing crisis, with 60% of services reporting recruitment difficulties. On Monday, the JLC will vote on a rate of €13.65 for Early Years educators and other rates for higher grades on…

SIPTU, the union representing the majority of workers in Bord na Móna, has condemned the “arrogance and hypocrisy” of the semi-state’s management after revelations that the company paid a benefit-in-kind tax bill for the €127,000 electric BMW used by the CEO and for his health insurance at a cost of €64,000. — SIPTU Divisional Organiser, Adrian Kane, said: “The largesse that Bord na Móna demonstrates towards its senior management contrasts sharply with its miserly approach to workers in recent years.

SIPTU representatives have today (Tuesday, 12th September) confirmed that last-ditch talks to avoid an all-out strike of members at GMC Civil and Mechanical Engineering have collapsed. This means that strike action will commence from tomorrow morning (Wednesday, 13th September) as planned. — SIPTU Transport, Energy, Aviation and Construction (TEAC) Division Organiser, Adrian Kane, said: “Our members never take the decision to strike lightly. However, the inflexible and disrespectful approach adopted by management has left them with no option. Something has to give.

Central Statistics Office (CSO) figures released today showing inflation rising to 6.3% will send a shockwave through workplaces across Ireland, according to SIPTU Deputy General Secretary, Gerry McCormack. — The union predicts that workers and their families, already struggling with a cost-of-living crisis, will face significant stress and anxiety as a result of rising prices. This will be compounded by the recent surge in interest rates and mean thousands more households struggling to make ends meet each month.

SIPTU Retained Fire Fighters have today (Tuesday, September 5th) voted to accept proposals from the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) to resolve their industrial dispute. This follows intensive consultation last week and a secret ballot. — Karan O Loughlin, SIPTU Divisional Organiser, said: “This has been a protracted battle to bring the poor terms and conditions for retained fire fighters into the public domain and to begin the process of rebuilding the Retained Fire Service. …

Oration by Ethel Buckley, Deputy General Secretary of SIPTU at the graveside of trade unionist, Patrick Dunbar, who was murdered by strike breakers on 10th March 1913 while participating in the Sligo Dock Strike against the Sligo Steam Navigation Company. — Comrades, We are here to remember our comrade Patrick Dunbar who was murdered by strike breakers exactly one hundred and ten years ago this year. …