Irish Rail workers live in a rarified bygone world

THERE was a fascinating insight into the world of some public sector workers last week, when Ingrid Miley, RTE’s IndustrialRelations Correspondent gave some details of the potential dispute at Irish Rail.

The company is in financial difficulty and has been trying to change work practices to help improve their position, while trade unions are seeking pay awards for their members.

An industrial dispute was averted before Christmas with some matters resolved, however on the Six One News last week, Ingrid Miley revealed that some of the staff are unhappy that a one off ex-gratia payment to them came by way of Dunnes Stores vouchers rather than One for All Gift vouchers.

The company saved approximately €200,000 in doing so, but that the staff didn’t get a One for All Gift voucher - which can be redeemed in dozens of different outlets - was a bone of con- tention for some.

Also some staff are unhappy that the vouchers could be the back door to introducing electronic payroll across the board, as around two hundred staff still receive their wages in notes and coins.

It was astonishing to hear that staff at such a big company as Irish Rail are still getting their wages in actual cash.

The administration and security costs in paying staff in cash must be quite considerable over the course of a year.

How such practices have not been stamped out years ago is quite revealing and begs questions about what other out-dated work practices remain in situ.

Workers may well say it is their right to be paid in cash and that it should be protected as a custom and practice, but we don’t travel by steam engine anymore, the world has progressed and evolved and out-dated custom and practices should be consigned to history.