News Archive

SIPTU General President Jack O’Connor has attacked IBECs call that there should be no tax increases in the next budget as “a wolf in sheep’s clothing. “This is nothing more than a thinly camouflaged attempt to insulate the better off from tax...

SIPTU members have served notice of strike action at Milne Foods in Birr, co. Offaly, due to the company’s failure to implement a Labour Court recommendation in relation to workers' conditions of employment. The strike action is scheduled to...

SIPTU drivers in Dublin Bus are to commence a ballot for strike action after they overwhelmingly rejected proposals to cut their pay and reduce their conditions of employment. At a meeting this afternoon (Wednesday, 3rd July), the SIPTU Dublin Bus drivers...

President and Delegates. The misguided public policy of one-sided austerity, which reflects the culture and the interests so dramatically revealed in the Anglo Irish tapes has utterly failed, inflicting misery on the peoples of Europe in the process. The...

Speaking on the economy at the ICTU conference in Belfast today (Tuesday 2nd July) SIPTU President, Jack O’Connor, called on the Irish Government to immediately “ramp up the domestic economy” or face exacerbating the economic and social...

SIPTU has welcomed a report by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions into workplace innovation in Ireland. In one of its key findings the ‘Work Organisation and Innovation in Ireland’ report concludes that workplace...

SIPTU has called on the Health Service Executive (HSE) to place the utmost emphasis on the health and safety of its employees and ensure that the circumstances that led to the death of a paramedic in 2010 are never repeated. The call follows the Dublin District Court...

Reacting to the publication on Thursday, 27th June, by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) of the Quarterly National Accounts, indicating that the Irish economy is in recession, SIPTU economist, Marie Sherlock, said it is clear that...

Workers in St. Colmcilles's Credit Union in Kells, county Meath, will commence industrial action tomorrow (27th June) morning at 9.30 a.m. in response to a management failure to recognise their union, SIPTU, for collective bargaining...

The Members of the Medical Laboratory Scientists Association (MLSA)have voted in favour of the Haddington Road proposals on pay and reform in the public service with 62% in favour and 38% against. ...

Former trade union official Brendan Archbold, who represented the Dunnes Stores strikers in their stand against apartheid South Africa recalls that struggle and meeting Mandela. “It will always be crucial for the trade union movement to play the role of a...

SIPTU members in Clover Lodge Nursing Home, in Athy, Co Kildare are to protest on Thursday (27th June) to demonstrate their anger at the company’s failure to recognise their rights or to honour agreements made with the union. According to SIPTU...

SIPTU Divisional Organiser, John King, has called on the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton, to immediately act on his stated intention that Ireland would be among the first countries to ratify ILO Convention 189...

SIPTU members have voted in favour of the Haddington Road proposals on pay and reform in the public service. Following an extensive ballot of members working in the public service, they have voted by 76% to 24% in favour of the proposals.Responding to the result...

SIPTU Contract Cleaners have vowed to “organise and fight” to defend the “threshold of decency” represented by the terms of the Registered Employment Agreement (REA) for the security and cleaning sector. Speaking to a crowd of over 100 people...

SIPTU Sector Organiser, Adrian Kane, has said that workers in St. Colmcilles's Credit Union in Kells, county Meath, have been left no option but to commence a campaign of industrial action after management refused to implement the terms of...

A colourful commemoration at the statue of Jim Larkin in O’Connell Street is being planned by SIPTU’s Fair Deal for Cleaners Campaign for mid-day on Monday 17th June next. The event is in honour of International Justice for Cleaners Day and will involve...

SIPTU has asked the Minister for Children, Frances Fitzgerald, for increased government investment in training for childcare workers which is both classroom based and involves on the job training. SIPTU Vice-President, Patricia King, said that...

The latest Live Register figures indicate a continued decline in the numbers signing on but it is not clear what is the main factor driving this trend, according to SIPTU Economist, Marie Sherlock. Live Register figures published today (Thursday, 6th...

SIPTU Home Support workers will hold a protest against government cutbacks to services in Dundalk town centre on Friday, 7th June at 3.00 p.m. Protesters will gather in Dundalk Town Square before marching to the local HSE Offices on Market Street to hand in a...

SIPTU has welcomed a Government commitment to regulate the provision of Home Help services but has warned that without increased funding regulation cannot guarantee quality care for elderly people. SIPTU Health Division Organiser, Paul Bell, said:...

SIPTU has described Central Statistics Office figures released today (Thursday, 30th May) which show a rise in the number of those in work as ‘a step in the right direction’ but expressed concern over the part-time nature of many of the new jobs....

Youth Workers and young people held a symbolic “Forced to Fly” protest outside the Department of Children and Youth Affairs, Mespil Road, Dublin 4, on Tuesday (28th May) at 11.00 a.m. to highlight continued funding cuts to youth services....

SIPTU members at Shanganagh Waste Water Treatment Plant, Co. Dublin, have voted unanimously this morning (Friday, 24th May) to accept proposals from the Labour Relations Commission and return to work. The vote came after three days of strike action...

A comprehensive collective agreement has been concluded between SIPTU Manufacturing Division and PepsiCo for a new manufacturing facility in Little Island in Cork. The plant will produce food ingredients which will be exported to PepsiCo manufacturing facilities...

Strike breakers are being utilised in an attempt to disrupt an official SIPTU dispute at the Shanganagh Water Treatment Plant, Co. Dublin. The decision by the management of SDD Shanganagh Water Treatment Ltd to fly in strike breakers from Spain is a major...

“We recommend acceptance of the new proposals for an agreement on pay and reform in the Public Service for the period 2013 – 2016. They optimise the potential for generating savings through progressive measures such as the replacement of agency staff with...

To mark World Cultural Diversity Day on Monday, 20th May, a new poster celebrating the diverse membership of SIPTU was launched in the Dan Shaw Centre in Navan. At an evening event co-hosted by SIPTU Meath District Committee and the migrant rights...

SIPTU members engaged in a second day of strike action at the Shanganagh Waste Water Treatment Plant, Co. Dublin, have expressed serious concern over the possible environmental impact of the dispute at the facility. The facility treats water for domestic...

Irish Equity, SIPTU and Equity UK met in Liberty Hall on Tuesday (21st May) and debated the challenges confronting actors who live and work in the Republic of Ireland and international actors who come to work in Ireland. Both unions have agreed that the...

SIPTU members at Shanganagh Waste Water Treatment Plant, Co. Dublin, began strike action today (Tuesday, 21st May) at 6.30 a.m. in response to their employer’s failure to refer a dispute relating to pay and shift premium payments to the Labour...

The National Executive Council (NEC) of SIPTU will convene on Thursday (23rd May) to consider the proposals which have emerged from discussions on pay and reform in the public service at the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) today. The proposals involve an advance on...

To mark World Cultural Diversity Day (Monday, 20th May) a new poster celebrating the diverse membership of SIPTU is being launched in the Dan Shaw Centre, Navan, Co. Meath, at 7.30 p.m. The event is being co-hosted by SIPTU Meath District...

The proposals which emerged from discussions at the Labour Relations Commission to resolve the issues at the centre of the dispute at Bus Eireann will now be put to a nationwide ballot of SIPTU members in the coming days. SIPTU Sector Organiser, Willie Noone...

SIPTU representatives are to meet with the management of pharmaceutical company, Pfizer, to discuss its announcement today (Wednesday, 15th May) that it intends to sell it’s Active Primary Ingredients (API) site at Little Island, Co....

A two-day conference focusing on the development of a European Qualifications Framework (EQF) will open in Liberty Hall, Dublin, tomorrow (Thursday, 16th May). SIPTU General Secretary, Joe O’Flynn, is opening the conference in the...

Bus Eireann trade union and management representatives will begin a 48 hour period of intensive engagement at the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) on Tuesday (14th May), aimed at reaching a conclusion to the dispute at the transport company. The basis for the...

Bus Éireann trade union and management representatives will begin a 48 hour period of intensive engagement at the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) on Tuesday (14th May), aimed at reaching a conclusion to the dispute at the transport company. The basis...

At a meeting of SIPTU shop stewards from the CIE Group of Companies in Liberty Hall this morning (14th May) it was decided to ballot members in Dublin Bus and Irish Rail for industrial action in solidarity with their colleagues in Bus Éireann. SIPTU Sector...

SIPTU Shop Stewards in CIE will meet on Tuesday (14th May) morning in Liberty Hall, Dublin, to discuss what action the union will take in response to the escalating dispute at Bus Éireann. SIPTU has also requested that the Irish Congress of Trade...

SIPTU members in the security and cleaning sector are staged a protest outside Crumlin Shopping Centre on Monday (13th May). The protest will highlight an attempt by the management of At Risk Security to unilaterally impose reductions to workers' pay and...

SIPTU General President, Jack O’Connor, has welcomed the decision of IBEC, the employers’ organisation, to call for an easing of austerity but has urged caution concerning the budgetary changes the group may be seeking to promote....

Strike action by SIPTU members at Shanganagh Waste Water Treatment Plant, Co. Dublin, scheduled to commence on Tuesday, 7th May, has been deferred following the reinstatement of a worker dismissed for trade union activity. Management and...

A very successful conference on Workplace Innovation was held on the 30th April and 1st May 2013 at the Green Isle Hotel, Dublin. The conference was jointly hosted by SIPTU’s Manufacturing Division and the IDEAS Institute.  It included speakers and...

Workers at Killarney Golf Club, Co. Kerry, have voted to accept a new restructuring plan for the business and to defer planned strike action scheduled to commence on Tuesday, 7th May. Staff voted overwhelmingly to accept the proposals at a meeting on...

The publication of an evaluation of the national internship programme, JobBridge, by Indecon consultants, yesterday (1st May), provides some positive indications of progression to paid employment but improvements are required to prevent...

Historic trade union banners and the Fintan Lalor pipe band led over 1,500 people on a sunny evening May Day march through central Dublin on Wednesday, 1st May. Leading the SIPTU contingent, on the Dublin Council of Trade Unions (DCTU) organised...

Historic trade union banners and the Fintan Lalor pipe band will lead SIPTU members in this year’s Dublin May Day march which begins at Parnell Square at 7.00 p.m. on Wednesday, 1st May. The march will proceed from Parnell Square to Liberty Hall where it...

A survey of young people between the ages of 16 to 35 has found that 94% do not wish to leave Ireland to find work. The internet survey conducted by the Young Workers’ Network found that only 6% of respondents said their preferred option was to leave Ireland....

SIPTU members at Shanganagh Waste Water Treatment Plant will begin strike action on Tuesday, 7th May, at 6.30 a.m., in response to their employer’s refusal to recognise the workers right to be collectively represented by their union. The...

An event celebrating the centenary of the 1913 Lockout and the history of trade unionism in the Galway area will take place in the SIPTU Offices on Forster Court, Galway City, on Thursday, 2nd May, at 7.00 p.m. Hosted by the SIPTU Galway...

SIPTU members in Bus Éireann are expected to ballot for industrial action following a management decision to impose unilateral changes to the pay and conditions of workers at the company. On Wednesday, 30th April, management at the semi-state...

Congress General Secretary David Begg said today (May 1) that the gains of Social Europe for working people were being dramatically eroded and undermined by synchronised austerity across the European Union. Begg said that across Europe on May Day - including in Dublin...

SIPTU has welcomed today’s publication of the report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG) into the administration of the National Health and Local Authority Levy Fund (Fund). The report is consistent with the findings of an internal investigation...

SIPTU representatives will meet with the management of Balfour Beatty CLG on Wednesday, 1st May, to discuss a proposal by the construction company to implement up to 24 redundancies. This week the company announced that it intends to restructure its head...

The National Executive Council of SIPTU has welcomed the ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) that the State is in breach of its obligations to ensure that the former employees of Waterford Crystal receive sufficient accrued occupational pension entitlements...

SIPTU has welcomed the announcement by the Minister for Education and Skills, Ruairi Quinn, that he is to introduce a system of random audits of school and Department of Education funded third level building projects, to verify pay and conditions...

SIPTU has alerted the Health Information Quality Authority (HIQA) to its concerns relating to the proposed closure by the National Ambulance Service of a number of ambulance control centres across the country and the transfer of emergency calls to Townsend...

SIPTU representatives met with the management of Diamond Innovations today (Tuesday, 23rd April) to discuss the announcement yesterday that it proposes to cease operations at its plant in Clonshaugh Business Park, Dublin 17, in September 2013. SIPTU...

The Government must act immediately to vindicate women’s constitutional rights in line with the Supreme Court ruling in relation to the ‘X case’, according to SIPTU Campaigns and Equality Organiser, Ethel Buckley. Representatives of...

Workers at Killarney Golf Club have voted overwhelmingly to take strike action following a management refusal to engage constructively with the Labour Court in relation to proposed redundancies. SIPTU members voted this afternoon (Thursday, 18th April) to begin...

SIPTU members and supporters staged a rally against further cuts to youth work budgets outside Dáil Eireann on Friday, 19th April. The protest by youth workers and those affected by continuing cuts to services will co-incided with Minister for Children...

SIPTU members working in the public service have voted to reject the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) proposals for a Revised Agreement on Pay and Reform by a margin of 53.7% against and 46.3% in favour. Commenting on the result, SIPTU General President Jack...

SIPTU members employed at Killarney Golf Club, Co. Kerry, have said they will fight a management attempt to make 24 workers redundant despite an ongoing Labour Court process aimed at saving jobs at the business. On Wednesday (10th April) management served...

SIPTU representatives have begun negotiations with management at Diageo Ltd aimed at minimising jobs loses following an announcement today (Thursday, 11th April) that the company intends to cease operations at its brewery in Waterford. SIPTU Organiser,...

SIPTU members employed at Killarney Golf Club, Co. Kerry, have expressed anger at management attempts to ignore an independent assessor’s report and impose redundancies and cutbacks on staff. SIPTU Sector Organiser, Dennis Hynes, said:...

The Labour Relations Commission proposals for a new public service agreement provide enhanced job security and significant protection from outsourcing for workers in Irish hospitals, according to SIPTU’s National Health Division Organiser, Paul Bell....

SIPTU members at the Lisheen Mine, Co. Tipperary, have expressed their sympathy to the family of miner Mario Francis who was tragically killed by a rock fall yesterday Thursday (4th April) afternoon. SIPTU Organiser, John Regan, said:...

The latest report from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), in its ninth review of Ireland, confirms the huge challenges that remain for the economy and the prospect of an exit this year from the bailout programme according to SIPTU economist,...

New figures from Eurostat which show that unemployment in the 15 to 24 age group in Ireland stands at just under 31%, must push this crisis to the top of the political agenda, according to SIPTU policy analyst Loraine Mulligan. The Irish rate has now...

Following hearings this morning (Tuesday, 2nd April), three Cork County Council workers suspended last month for carrying out urgent road maintenance in breach of council safety procedures are to return to work tomorrow. SIPTU Organiser, Con...

Dublin based youth workers and young people met with politicians in Leinster House on Wednesday (27th March) to discuss the impact further cuts will have on the vital work carried out by youth projects in the city. The meeting followed the announcement that the...

SIPTU members at Tara Mines, Co. Meath, have voted to accept proposals aimed at bringing to a conclusion the long running dispute at the company. Among the key clauses contained in the proposed agreement is a commitment by the owners of Tara Mines,...

SIPTU representatives have met with union members and management at the Lonza plant, Swords, County Dublin, to discuss alternatives to the closure of the plant. SIPTU Organiser, Michelle Quinn, said: “Workers at the plant are still...

SIPTU members will rally outside the Dáil on Thursday, 21st March, at 10.30 a.m. to protest against EU policies which promote the privatisation of water resources. The rally is part of a EU wide campaign by the European Federation of Public Service...

SIPTU is supporting a protest this morning (Tuesday, 19th March) by workers at Hassetts Pharmacy, 9-11 North Main Street, Wexford, Co. Wexford. This is the third protest this month at pharmacies which are part of the Uniphar Retail Services...

SIPTU members at BCD Travel in Tralee, county Kerry, have deferred strike action following the company’s decision to attend the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) in an effort to resolve outstanding issues arising from a dispute over the non-payment...

1. The Labour Relations Commission’s proposals for a revised Agreement on pay in the Public Service to extend over the period 2013-2016, are the result of unprecedentedly difficult negotiations. They have emerged in the context of the on-going consequences...

SIPTU General President Jack O’Connor has described calls for intensifying the rate of evictions as reprehensible and barbaric. He went on to call on the Government “to come up with better solutions to the mortgage crisis than reverting to the tactics of...

SIPTU has called on the Irish Hotels Federation to accept workers have a right to decent conditions of employment which can only be protected by the reinstatement of the Joint Labour Committee (JLC) for the sector. SIPTU Organiser Denis Hynes said: “Claims by...

The Old Darnley Lodge workers are ending their sit-in at the hotel in Athboy, Co. Meath, on Friday, 8th March, at 11.30 a.m., following the payment of their redundancy entitlements. Old Darnley Lodge SIPTU Shop Steward, Eileen...

SIPTU members in Bus Éireann have voted by a margin of almost nine to one to reject proposals presented by the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) to change the terms and conditions of their employment. SIPTU Sector Organiser, Willie Noone, said:...

SIPTU members in MSD, Rathdrum, county Wicklow, were informed this morning (Thursday, 7th March) that the plant will close by the end of 2015 with the expected loss of 280 jobs. According to SIPTU Organiser, Frank Jones, workers...

SIPTU General President, Jack O’Connor, has expressed his deep regret at the tragic death of the Venezuelan president, Hugo Chavez. “I want to express my deep regret at the death of Hugo Chavez whose passing is a tragedy for the...

SIPTU members employed by BCD Travel, which manages corporate travel arrangements for the Kerry Group, will ballot on strike action tomorrow (Wednesday, 6th March). The seven workers based in the Kerry Group head office in Tralee, Co....

SIPTU representatives supported a protest this morning (Tuesday, 5th March) by workers at Roches Pharmacy, Main Street, Gorey, Co. Wexford. Staff decided to protest outside the store from 11.30 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. to highlight their frustration...

SIPTU is launching a national campaign aimed at defending community jobs and services which are threatened by Government plans for the sector. SIPTU Sector Organiser Darragh O’Connor, said: “Up to 2000 workers in the community sector face an...

SIPTU is among over 100 civil society organisations, trade unions, politicians and academics supporting a rally at the Central Bank, Dublin, on Monday, 4th March, at 6.30 p.m., calling on the Government to legislate for the X...

SIPTU members are attending a protest outside the City of Dublin Youth Services Board (CDYSB) office, Morehampton Road, Dublin 4, tomorrow (Friday, 1st March) at 10.00 a.m. to demand the reversal of cuts imposed on youth projects in the city....

The School of History, University College Cork, in association with SIPTU, is pleased to announce that a two day conference on the 1913 Dublin lockout, and the role of labour during the ‘revolutionary decade’ of 1912-23, is...

The national officers of SIPTU will be taking a further pay reduction in line with the proposals which have emerged from discussions on the Croke Park (Public Service) Agreement. In a statement today (Tuesday 26th February), SIPTU General President, Jack...

Members are justifiably concerned about the on-going Croke Park Agreement process. Indeed, some are doubtful that we should be involved in the talks at all. There is a view that bellicose statements and refusal to participate would yield better results. The fact...

SIPTU school bus drivers employed by Bus Éireann in the Galway area will withdraw their labour on Friday, 1st March, unless an agreement is reached with management that ends attempts to undermine workers’ pay and conditions. SIPTU Transport...

SIPTU has called on the Government to deploy in Budget 2014 the full €1 billion savings secured in the recent promissory note deal and invest in a stimulus plan aimed at job creation and economic growth. Addressing a meeting of the union’s Wexford District...

A general meeting attended by over 130 SIPTU Fire Fighters took place on Monday, 18th February, in Liberty Hall, Dublin. The meeting provided members with an opportunity to receive a detailed briefing from SIPTU Vice-President Patricia King (the...

SIPTU school bus drivers employed by Bus Éireann in the Galway area will withdraw their labour on Friday, 22nd February, in response to a long running campaign by management to undermine the workers’ pay and conditions. SIPTU Transport Sector...

SIPTU school bus drivers employed by Bus Éireann in the Galway area will withdraw their labour on Friday, 22nd February, in response to a long running campaign by management to undermine the workers’ pay and conditions. SIPTU Transport Sector...

Congress General Secretary David Begg has condemned the ‘cheap attacks’ on working people which he said had become a hallmark of the current crisis, in Ireland and across the European Union. Begg said the failure to fashion a just resolution to the...

The Old Darnley Lodge workers are calling on concerned members of their local community to attend a meeting in the St. James Hall, Athboy, Co. Meath, on Thursday (21st February) at 7.00 p.m. to discuss the future of the hotel. The workers, who...

SIPTU General President Jack O’Connor has responded strongly to a statement reported to have been made tonight by Brendan McGinty, Director of HR and IR Services at IBEC. Mr. McGinty is reported to have called for the withholding of increments due to...