Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
DIRTY LITTLE SECRET OF BAR HARASSMENT
Attacks on Ulster hospitality staff ‘rampant’
SEXUAL harassment of bar workers in Northern Ireland is “rampant”, a union is claiming.
Unite said attacks on staff in pubs and clubs ranging from punters groping waiting staff to verbal abuse, is the hospitality industry’s “dirty little secret”.
It added it is to commission local research into the issue after a survey in Britain found 90% of hospitality workers of all genders have experienced sexual harassment.
The union is also involved in a “Know Your Rights At Work” campaign with staff being handed cards outlining their rights and entitlements.
Bar worker and union activist Neil Moore is trying to “organise” workers in the sector.
He told the Mirror: “Hospitality workers are often at a total disadvantage when standing up for their basic rights.
“They often work under precarious contracts which mean they have few guarantees or protections if they raise objections.
“A worker who is on a zerohours contract finds it hard to stand-up for themselves to a boss who can decide – and often does – to punish them by withholding hours. Sexual harassment of staff is rampant. A Unite survey in Britain found 90% of hospitality workers of all genders have experienced sexual harassment and female workers often experience the most sinister element. The problem is, it’s viewed as part of the job.
“We’ve been getting our ‘know your rights’ booklet out all over Belfast and almost everyone you meet has something to tell you.
“One 16-year-old worker told me recently when a customer grabbed her and literally pinned her to the wall, she was scolded by the manager for crying and shouted at to get back to work without any time-out after he was ejected from the premises.
“Another female worker was grabbed in a bearhug by a customer as she was carrying a tray full of glasses.
It’s like the normal rules of behaviour don’t apply to people after they open those doors. “If it happened to someone in a shop or an office there’d be outrage, but when it happens in a pub it’s somehow regarded differently and that has to stop.
“Other workers tell of the experience of being stalked by customers who regularly wait outside their workplace for them to walk home after their shift ends. “That’s the reality of life for young hospitality workers in Belfast.
“It’s a long way from the picture portrayed by the industry bosses.” The barman added low wages, “precarious conditions and disrespect that workers in the sector succumb to, often leave them reliant on tips and feeling powerless to speak out against both their bosses and harassers for fear of losing out financially”. Mr Moore said: “A growing majority are starting to talk about the abuse, the harassment, the poor pay.
“Many recognise that joining a fightback trade union like Unite is the only way to tip the unfair balance of power the bosses enjoy effectively in favour of the workers.” A PILOT crashed his helicopter when he was distracted by his mobile phone ringing.
Ireland’s Air Accident Investigation Unit published a report into the incident at Carrahane Strand, near Tralee, Co Kerry, in July.
The pilot was practising low-altitude landing and hovering manoeuvres in the Enstrom 280FX when he lost control.
The investigation found: “The pilot had decided to take a short break from practice and elected to land in the lagoon which had a landing surface of soft, wet sand.
“When the helicopter was touching the ground but still light on the skids, the pilot’s mobile rang.
“He glanced at the phone and at the same time as this momentary distraction, a gust of wind hit the helicopter forcing it to roll over.”
The pilot was unhurt.