Unions cannot hold the public to ransom

IN a week when the actions of the main banks have been further exposed, you might think it would be hard for any organisation to appear even more cynical than lenders who forced homeowners into higher interest payments on their mortgages.

Well, hats off then to Siptu, Unite and the National Bus and Rail Union, which have managed to steal the crown.

Yesterday, the unions announced a series of five one-day stoppages of all rail services in a dispute over pay.

After talks broke down at the Workplace Relations Commission, you might have thought the unions would turn to the Labour Court, but they rejected this out of hand, the first proof of just how cynical they are.

After all, the Labour Court hammered out the deal for bus workers, which was welcomed at the time by the unions, but now they refuse to employ the same mechanism.

They cited the usual allegations about management behaviour, claiming Irish Rail chief executive David Franks, who was not even at the talks, collapsed what was believed to be an imminent agreement, but offered no proof of this.

What is even more cynical, though, is the timing of their stoppages.

One, on November 14, coincides with the Ireland v Denmark World Cup playoff at the Aviva Stadium, one the most important fixtures in our soccer history, and which the vast majority of fans reach by taking the Dart.

Nor will they be the only ones inconvenienced, as fans from around the country also usually take mainline rail services to the games.

Another stoppage will take place on December 8. Though it is no longer a school holiday, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception is traditionally the day when people from all over the country go to Dublin to do their Christmas shopping.

Now, not only will they be discommoded, but workers in the retail sector will lose out on what often is one of the must lucrative days of the year at the tills.

If the unions think this action will force the Government to intervene, they are very much mistaken. They should reconsider their position and go to the Labour Court because if they do not, and public opinion turns against them, they have only themselves to blame.