Rail union threat over €500 gift
RAIL unions are still angry over a €500 voucher for workers that can only be used in Dunnes Stores – and it may escalate into a major clash with management.
One union official said: ‘This mistrust towards management could no doubt manifest itself in future ballots.’
‘Palpable sense of rage’ 60% signed up for the voucher
COMMUTERS could be facing further rail strikes because unions are fuming over a €500 Christmas bonus gift card their members are getting.
The Irish Daily Mail revealed yesterday that some staff are unhappy at being offered a Dunnes Stores voucher instead of one for various shops.
Even more bizarrely, it has now emerged that concerns are growing that drivers, who are being balloted over a 1.15% pay increase for past productivity and mentoring, may reject a Labour Court recommendation given in August.
Dermot O’Leary, general secretary of the NBRU, said: ‘The prospect of an acceptance of the Labour Court recommendation has been severely undermined by the behaviour of the CEO regarding the issue of a restricted voucher being issued following the recent pay dispute.’
He added that the ‘responsibility’ of such a negative result would lie with senior management.
This dispute is a separate issue to the general pay claim row which was solved in recent weeks, after two 24-hour strikes. Talks to resolve it in the Workplace Relations Commission failed and a Labour Court hearing was held on August 3.
According to the Labour Court document, the unions involved – Siptu and the National Bus and Rail Union – argued that ‘productivity given in the past was required to be paid for’, as well as the ‘voluntary’ mentoring of new drivers.
Drivers represented by both unions are currently being balloted and it was hoped that this process might be completed by Christmas.
Staff recently voted to accept the Labour Court recommendation which included a pay rise of 7.5% over three years, and a €500 ‘goodwill’ voucher.
But they then learned that the company was issuing employees with €500 Dunnes Stores vouchers for the ‘goodwill’ gesture instead of an expected One4All gift card, similar to some of their bus colleagues. One group even accused the company of ‘Grinch-like behaviour’.
There are now concerns that this move may cause drivers to vote against the ‘productivity’ Labour Court proposal.
Siptu organiser Paul Cullen last night told the Mail that the recent events in relation ‘to the issuing of vouchers in Irish Rail has resulted in palpable sense of rage and mistrust with management, to such extent that future levels of engagement will inevitably result in such obstinacy been reciprocated.’
He added: ‘This mistrust towards management could no doubt manifest itself in future ballots.’ The Labour Court recommendation for past productivity and mentoring said the semi-state company ‘should make a pay adjustment of 1.15% to all drivers to acknowledge all “past productivity”’.
This document also said they should ‘put in place an arrangement whereby it shall be a requirement of the driver grade that sufficient numbers of drivers can be assigned “mentoring” duties at all times to satisfy the training needs of trainee drivers in this regard’.
A spokesperson for Irish Rail said yesterday that 60% of the 3,800 employees have now signed up to receive the voucher through an online registration system.
They said they ‘await’ the outcome of the ballot, adding that it is one ‘which will provide improved earnings for drivers and allow us to expand our services to meet customer demand’.
A spokesman told the Mail: ‘Obviously if it were rejected, drivers will not benefit from that 1.15% and it will restrict training and service expansion.
‘We trust the trade unions are not seeking to damage driver earnings and service expansion as some sort of “response” to the swift, effective and popular distribution of €500 vouchers to each employee.’