National Centre for Partnership established

A National Centre for Partnership was established in July 1997, in accordance with a commitment in Ireland's current three-year national agreement, Partnership 2000.

Entrusted with facilitating partnership between employers, employees and unions, a National Centre for Partnership was formally established on 15 July 1997, meeting a government commitment in Ireland's three-year economic and social pact, Partnership 2000 (IE9702103F).The Centre's activities will be directed towards facilitating trust and partnership between employers, employees and unions and, in this regard, it will seek to facilitate appropriate agreed local arrangements rather than to prescribe particular partnership mechanisms.

The new centre is chaired by the current chair of the Labour Court, Evelyn Owens, who oversees a board made up of key figures from the main social partner organisations and of government officials. The two key appointments, however, are the full-time directors who will monitor and assist partnership initiatives in both the private and public sectors.

John O Dowd is being seconded from his position as general secretary of the Civil and Public Services Union to take charge of the public sector division of the new centre, while Gerry Grogan, a former president of the main employers' body, the Irish Business and Employers Confederation (IBEC), will take charge of the private sector division. These two full-time positions are executive posts, on a three-year contract basis, to coincide with the three-year timeframe of Partnership 2000.

In accordance with Partnership 2000, the National Centre for Partnership will have the following roles:

• promotion of involvement and partnership;

• monitoring developments;

• technical assistance and support to organisations in developing involvement and partnership arrangements;

• dissemination of best practice; and

• training for management, union, employer and workplace representatives.

The Centre will utilise facilities within the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), IBEC and appropriate institutions and state agencies. Joint union/management training initiatives are also expected to be backed by the new Centre and it is anticipated that a number of such joint programmes will be run on a pilot basis by the Centre.