Ireland
Background information on industrial relations in Ireland
- 17 May 2012
Ireland: Public service unions continue to back cost-cutting agreementPublic service unions in Ireland have told a parliamentary committee that the gap between government income and spending must be reduced, regardless of how it happened or who is to blame. They say the Public Service Agreement (widely known as the Croke Park Agreement) has delivered both industrial peace and cost reductions since it was negotiated in 2010, and is on track to achieve its objectives of cutting the public service workforce by 38,000 and reducing costs by €3.5 billion.
- 24 Apr 2012
Ireland: Ireland: Employment and Industrial Relations in the Hotels and RestaurantsAccording to CSO figures, employment levels have dropped by about 18,000 in the sector in the period from 2007 to 2010. At enterprise level, particularly in the hotel sector, there is evidence that unions and employers are engaging in concession bargaining to ensure the survival of the company – short time working has been introduced by agreement in some hotels. At national level employers have been lobbying to reduce pay rates, premiums and terms and conditions set down under sectoral wage mechanisms (Joint Labour Committees or JLCs). Employers have maintained that the JLC system is archaic and should be abolished. However, unions say the system protects vulnerable workers from exploitation. Proposals for reform of the mechanisms were under discussion at the time of writing.
- 05 Apr 2012
Ireland: Job cuts are central to recession cost-cutting strategyNew research challenges the perception that pay cuts have been widely used in the Republic of Ireland during the recession to avoid job losses. The research, based on earnings figures from the Central Statistics Office, shows that jobs were cut in nine out of 10 private sector firms where wage bills were also cut or increased during the recession. However, the Irish Business and Employers Confederation suggests that the study group did not include enough small businesses.
- 05 Apr 2012
Ireland: Ireland: The representativeness of trade unions and employer associations in the insurance sectorIt is estimated that the insurance sector employs less than 1% of the Irish labour force, as in 2009, the Irish Insurance Federation (IIF), represented 63 companies, employing a total of 14,300 workers. Most of the sector’s large companies recognise unions for collective bargaining and had complied with the national social partnership agreements until employer group IBEC withdrew from the agreements in 2009. According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO), trade union density in ‘Financial, insurance and real estate activities’ was 31% in 2008. A 2009 survey by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) found that rates of trade union recognition in the ‘Financial/Insurance/Business’ sectors was 22%, with collective bargaining rates at 14%.
- 27 Mar 2012
Ireland: Ireland: The representativeness of trade unions and employer associations in the paper sectorIreland’s paper manufacturing sector forms a very small part of the economy. In view of this, there are no official statistics or data available on the sector. It is estimated that up to 2,000 people work in the sector in Ireland, amounting to less than 0.1% of total employment in the Irish economy. There are believed to be fewer than 50 companies in the sector, a mix of indigenous companies and multinationals. One of the largest employers in the sector, Smurfit Kappa, employs about 700 people. Most of the larger employers in the sector would be members of IBEC (the Irish Business and Employers Confederation) and recognise trade unions for collective bargaining purposes. The SIPTU trade union (Services, Industrial, Professional and Technical Union) represents workers in the sector.
- 07 Mar 2012
Ireland: Ireland: The representativeness of trade unions and employer associations in the sea fisheries sectorAccording to a 2006 Marine Institute report ‘Sea change’, direct employment in the landing of fish in 2003 was 4,000 full time equivalents (FTEs) with direct and indirect employment in the subsector at 5,960 FTEs. The direct contribution of the ‘Fish Landing’ sector to GNP was €118 million in 2003 and the direct and indirect contribution to GNP was €321 million. However, according to a Dail debate in May 2010, figures from The Irish Fisheries Board now suggest the number of people working on fishing vessels has dropped to 2,100. According to the Services Industrial Professional and Technical Union (SIPTU) rates of unionisation in the sector are virtually non-existent and therefore collective bargaining would be rare.
- 10 Feb 2012
Ireland: Recent wage rises likely to be limited to export-driven sectorsA limited level of local wage bargaining in Ireland, confined largely to profitable export-led pharmaceutical, medical devices and food sectors, has been visible since the middle of 2011 and has led to pay increases in these industries of around 2.8% in line with inflation. However, it is unlikely to spread to other sectors of the economy, where demand is much weaker, because of the relative weakness of trade unions and the need to maintain employment during the current recession.
- 23 Jan 2012
Ireland: Government curbs redundancy terms for banksThe Irish government’s finance department has confirmed that banks covered by the state guarantee on all bank deposits and liabilities must not pay better redundancy terms than those offered to public sector workers. The public sector limit was set in 2010 for almost 2,000 staff who left the Health Service Executive. It provides for an extra three weeks' pay for each year of service, on top of the statutory two weeks' pay for each year already provided by the state.
- 09 Jan 2012
Ireland: Change in public service pensions for new recruitsThe Irish Government has published legislation introducing changes to public service pensions for new entrants. It hopes to save 35% on state annual expenditure on pension schemes by 2050. Key changes mean the calculation of pensions based on ‘final salary’ will end and ‘career averaging’ will be introduced. Post-retirement pension increases will be linked to the consumer price index and the minimum public service pension age will rise to 68, with a maximum retirement age of 70.