Actors and institutions in Ireland

The Department of the Taoiseach (Prime Minister) was the government department responsible for the former tripartite social partnership system from 1987 to 2009. However, the remit for the government’s involvement in industrial relations and working conditions today is under the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (formerly the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation). This department is in charge of all major legislative changes in this area (including to industrial relations laws and state dispute resolution bodies). It was also tasked with establishing the Low Pay Commission, and is responsible for discussing the national minimum wage rate. In 2019, the Low Pay Commission recommended increasing the minimum wage by €0.25 per hour, from €9.55 to €9.80.

The Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, established in 2011, is largely responsible for the public sector pay bill and pensions. It also negotiated the major public sector stability agreements (the Croke Park Agreement, the Haddington Road Agreement, the Lansdowne Road Agreement, the Public Services Stability Agreement and – in December 2020 – Building Momentum) with the Public Services Committee of the ICTU, with the assistance of the Workplace Relations Commission. These agreements also apply to non-ICTU bodies, such as associations representing the Garda Síochána (the police) and the Defence Forces, and a very small number of non-ICTU trade unions, representing hospital consultants, dentists and psychiatric nurses.

The Workplace Relations Commission was established in 2015. It is an amalgamation of four state bodies that previously regulated employment relations: the Labour Relations Commission, the Employment Appeals Tribunal, the Equality Tribunal and the National Employment Rights Authority.

The Labour Court deals with individual and collective dispute referrals.

The Health and Safety Authority is the national statutory body with responsibility for ensuring workers (employed and self-employed) and those affected by work activity are protected from work-related injury and ill health. It enforces occupational safety and health law, promotes accident prevention and provides information and advice across all sectors. It also played a role in monitoring the ‘return to work’ protocol during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, undertaking workplace inspections.

The ICTU is the umbrella group for the large majority of trade unions in Ireland, with 48 affiliated trade unions. At national level, the ICTU is the central negotiating body, for example facilitating bilateral public sector agreement talks. The ICTU was also a tripartite body during the formal era of social partnership (1987–2009). Trade unions do not have to be affiliated with the ICTU to be legitimate. However, in the public sector, the employer (the government) does not bargain with non-ICTU unions. A trade union must comply with the terms of the Trade Union Acts and the Industrial Relations Acts and must satisfy a list of criteria to be granted a negotiating licence.

The government, as an employer, also consults with a small number of non-ICTU unions and associations that represent the Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces. However, considerable dissatisfaction has been expressed by the non-ICTU groups, in particular those representing the Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces, regarding their lack of direct involvement in negotiations.

Ibec is the largest representative body for employers in Ireland. It was a tripartite body involved in social partnership (1987–2009) but has not negotiated at national level since national wage agreements were terminated (it does not represent employers in public sector-wide talks, but can represent individual public sector employers, such as universities, in dispute resolution). Ibec has a policy advocacy role and represents members in day-to-day industrial relations in the Workplace Relations Commission and the Labour Court. Ibec also lobbies on behalf of small firms through its Small Firms Association.

The Construction Industry Federation represents employers in the construction industry, acting as a policy advocate and representing members in industrial relations forums.

The Irish SME Association represents companies with fewer than 250 employees. It is a lobby group and does not engage in collective bargaining.

The American Chamber of Commerce Ireland (AmCham) articulates members’ interests in the formulation of EU and Irish employment law, keeping its membership informed of changes in law ‘which may directly affect the way they do business’. It does not engage in collective bargaining.

About trade union representation

The right to form a union is enshrined in Article 40(6)(1)(iii) of the Constitution of Ireland. Trade union members are protected against discrimination under various laws. These include the Unfair Dismissals Act, 1977, which makes dismissal for reasons of trade union membership or activity automatically unfair. Some public servants are currently excluded from the ability to form trade unions, and instead form representative associations, which are subject to restrictions around striking. These include members of the Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces.

Trade union membership and density, 2012–2020

Notes: * Proportion of employees who are members of a trade union. ** Trade union membership of employees derived for the total union membership and adjusted, if necessary, for trade union members outside the active, dependent and employed labour force (i.e. retired workers, self-employed workers, students, unemployed people). CSO, Central Statistics Office; n.a., not available.

Overall, trade union density has continued to decline since the end of the 20th century, even though trade union membership has increased since 2019. The density has decreased owing to a record level of employment in Ireland, with over 2.5 million people in employment. Female trade union membership is increasing, and women now constitute 75% of all trade union members in Ireland.

Main trade union confederations and federations

There is just one trade union confederation in Ireland, the ICTU.

Main trade union confederations and federations

In 2011, a report by the Commission on the Trade Union Movement was published. This report recommended that affiliate unions of the ICTU working in common sectors should cooperate more closely and explore possible amalgamations and mergers, in order to increase their capacity to deliver for members and also their wider impact. In 2013, at the ICTU’s two-yearly conference, union realignment was formally adopted, with exploratory talks between some unions taking place in 2014. A major merger between three public service trade unions – the Irish Municipal, Public and Civil Trade Union (Impact), the Public Service Executive Union (PSEU) and the Civil and Public Services Union (CPSU) – took effect from 1 January 2018. This led to the formation of a new trade union with 80,000 members, known as Fórsa. Following this merger, a number of craft unions merged to become Connect Trade Union. Trade union rationalisation is likely to become a topical issue again, and some level of amalgamation involving smaller trade unions, for practical and financial reasons, is likely to be a focal point.

About employer representation

Employer organisation membership and density, 2012–2019

Notes: * No national administrative data available; Ibec indicates that the density is 70% of employees in employment. ** Percentage of employees working in an establishment that is a member of any employer organisation that is involved in collective bargaining.

Main employer organisations

The main employer organisation in Ireland is Ibec, which lists some 7,500 companies as members, and has 60 sub-branches specialising in specific sectors. Part of Ibec is the Small Firms Association, which specialises in representing firms employing 50 people or fewer.

The Construction Industry Federation (CIF) specialises in representing businesses in and associated with the construction industry. It has around 3,000 members.

The Irish SME Association (ISME) is a representative body for companies with fewer than 250 employees. It is a lobby group and does not engage in collective bargaining.

AmCham represents over 500 US-headquartered multinational companies in Ireland, acting as a lobby group.

Main employer organisations and confederations, 2022

Sources: Organisations and confederations’ websites

Tripartism is not part of collective bargaining. This has been the case since the end of 2009. However, with continued momentum in the Irish economy since 2013 there is pressure to create some form of national system to coordinate policy on employment-related factors and on broader social and economic issues. The ICTU and Ibec have called for the LEEF process to be enhanced and expanded to involve both actors in areas of mutual concern. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic provided the backdrop for the involvement of both representative bodies to engage directly with government on devising the ‘return to work’ protocol and developing pandemic payment support for workers and businesses. Ibec and the ICTU continue to press for deeper social dialogue. The new three-party coalition government (comprising Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party), with Micheál Martin elected as Taoiseach in June 2020, promised to develop social dialogue further, committing to establish a new social dialogue unit within the Taoiseach’s department. Both social partners, Ibec and the ICTU, have expressed a desire for enhanced social dialogue structures, with Ibec seeking the LEEF’s involvement on a broader set of issues, such as housing. To formalise and bolster social dialogue, they will require government approval, which they have not yet received.

A bipartite body, approved by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, is the Low Pay Commission. This commission is tasked with looking at the major issues around low-paid work and determining if the national minimum wage merits an increase. It comprises an independent chair; three people representing the interests of low-paid workers; three people representing the interests of employers (to whom the national minimum wage is relevant); and two people with an economics, labour market economics, statistics or employment law background.

The social partners sit on the National Economic and Social Council (NESC). The NESC concentrates on environmental and housing issues; however, it played a major role in establishing the social and economic backdrop for successive social partnership agreements (1987–2009). It remains active despite the collapse of social partnership in 2009.

In 2015, the government instituted the National Economic Dialogue. The dialogue is a formalised process of consultation and debate involving a wide range of organisations representing societal interests, including Ibec and the ICTU, to enhance the whole-of-year budget development process.

Main tripartite and bipartite bodies

Regulation, composition and competencies of the bodies