Community Employment (CE) supervisors will begin five days of strike action next Monday (13th May), across the country, following the failure of the Minister for Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, Paschal Donohoe, to agree to meet them to discuss their right to a pension. The 1,250 staff concerned have no access to any occupational pension scheme, despite a Labour Court recommendation in 2008 that as the CE programme’s funding agency the Government should provide them with one. The five day strike will impact on community employment schemes across the country including those providing childcare, elderly-care and drug rehabilitation services. SIPTU Organiser, Eddie Mullins, said: “It is deeply unfortunate but this action will inevitably have an impact on both CE schemes and the communities in which they provide services. Participants may not get paid and progress in community schemes will be halted due to the lack of supervisory management. “Paschal Donohoe should respect these workers and the vital community services provided by their community employment schemes. He must meet with their representatives to discuss why after more than 10 years they still do not have a pension.” He added: “Union representatives did have a constructive meeting with the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Regina Doherty, last week, to discuss this issue. This followed effective lobbying by a CE supervisor based in Galway. However, it is clear that concrete action must be taken by the Minister for Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform in order to achieve a resolution to this dispute.” During the strike action hundreds of CE supervisors from both unions and their supporters will attend daily protests at seven locations around the country. These include Intreo and Revenue offices in Galway and Waterford, and political constituency offices in Dublin, Donegal, Galway, Cork, Portlaoise and Limerick. CE supervisors are also contacting election candidates to ensure their commitment to resolving this long running industrial dispute.
CE supervisors conduct strike action across the country next week
