The upward redistribution of wealth over the past 40 years has shifted $50 trillion from the bottom 90% to the top 1%. That’s $50 trillion that would have gone into the paychecks of ordinary working people had inequality held constant $50 trillion that would have built a far larger and more prosperous economy—$50 trillion that would have enabled the vast majority of people to be far more healthy, resilient, and financially secure. In real terms this means that If you are earning $35,000 a year You are being paid $26,000 a year less than you would have had income distributions […]

Legislative change needed to enable workers work more than their ‘banded-hours’ contracts where extra working hours are available Research to be published today in a Mandate Trade Union report, ‘Smoke and Mirrors’ (15952_smoke&mirrors_report_interior), shows that nearly two-thirds of retail workers are earning less than €451 per week. The biggest challenge in terms of decent incomes shown in the report is the number of hours worked in the sector and the union is calling for legislative change to enable workers to work more than their ‘banded-hours’ contracts where extra working hours are available. Dr Conor McCabe, researcher with the Queen’s University Management […]

Ireland’s largest public service union, Fórsa, has today (Wednesday) criticised what it describes as multiple failures of leadership by the Department of Health. In an opening statement to the Joint Oireachtas Health Committee this morning, convened to discuss the welfare and safety of workers and patients in the public health service, Fórsa officials said the department’s current approach to leadership involves ignoring staff concerns about a broad range of issues. These include the withdrawal of protections for staff experiencing long Covid conditions, a failure to expand the assault scheme to include all health staff, in addition to what Fórsa described […]

Fórsa backs indefinite strike action in a number of community and voluntary sector health services Union leader slams ‘foot-dragging’ approach of Government to addressing pay and conditions inequality Fórsa’s national executive has backed a proposal for indefinite strike action in a number of community and voluntary sector agencies funded by the HSE. The action is likely to involve hundreds of health and care staff, in a number of agencies selected by the union. The union has also committed to footing the wage costs of striking staff. ‘Section 39’ agencies provide a range of residential and day services for people with […]

An excellent article from the Socialist Voice website in explaining the Industrial Relations Act. The Industrial Relations Act (1990) was introduced on 18 July 1990, replacing the Trade Disputes Act (1906), the main principle of which was that anything done in a trade dispute, provided it was not illegal in itself, would be free from criminal and civil liability. The 1990 act was introduced as a control mechanism on trade unions. It was a response to equivalent legislation being introduced in Britain because of increasing levels of industrial unrest and strikes, as dissatisfaction rose during the 1970s and 80s when […]

Dr Laura Bambrick explains what workers need to know about their new legal right to be paid sick pay if they are too unwell to work. Up until New Year’s Day 2023 Irish employment law did not require employers to pay their staff when absent due to illness or injury. Sick pay was treated as a perk of the job that employers had the power to decide whether or not to include in a contract of employment.  As a result, half of the workforce, over one million workers, are not covered for paid sick leave in their terms and conditions.  […]

The 42nd National Conference of the All-India Trade Union Congress is taking place in Alappuzha, Kerala on 17-20 December 2022 with the participation of delegates from all regions and sectors of India. A big international delegation of trade unionists from different continents is attending the Congress. The WFTU general secretary, Pambis Kyritsis addressed the AITUC expressing the solidarity of the international class-oriented trade union movement with the struggle of the heroic Indian working class. You can read below the whole WFTU intervention.     WFTU General Secretary Pambis Kyritsis Speech in 42nt National Congress Of AITUC India Dear comrades, First of all, […]

Nurses in the Six Counties who are members of the union Unison have faced freezing conditions to take part in a day of strike action to demand better pay. Strikes have been taking place since just after midnight and have seen nurses, ambulance staff and other health workers walking out and standing with placards in temperatures as low as -4C.   “It was extremely cold, but they were very determined to stand out and speak up” Anne Speed Anne Speed, head of bargaining and representation at Unison Northern Ireland, told Nursing Times thousands of nurses were striking. She said the atmosphere on […]

ICTU submission on Auto-enrolment

The Mandate Trade Union has called on members of the public to respect retail workers during the busy and intense Christmas shopping season. The call coincides with UNI Global Union’s international day of action which seeks to raise awareness about the importance of combatting violence and harassment across the retail sector. Mandate General Secretary, Gerry Light, said that this is an extremely important issue for those working in the various precarious employments across the retail sector. “The last two years have been extremely difficult for everybody but particularly for retail frontline workers, who continuously served their communities throughout the pandemic and […]