Labour Court Database __________________________________________________________________________________ File Number: CD90419 Case Number: LCR13042 Section / Act: S67 Parties: IRISH FERTILIZER INDUSTRIES LIMITED - and - SERVICES INDUSTRIAL PROFESSIONAL TECHNICAL UNION;NATIONAL ENGINEERING ELECTRICAL TRADES UNION;AMALGAMATED ENGINEERING UNION;ELECTRICAL TRADES UNION |
Dispute concerning the implementation of a 39 hour week.
Recommendation:
7. The Court has considered the submissions made by the parties
in relation to the outstanding issues arising from the
implementation of the reduction in working hours and recommends as
follows:
Item 1.3
Insofar as the agreement related to the reduction in weekly
working hours the total annual reduction in hours worked is forty
eight and the Court therefore takes the view that the Company's
proposal in this respect should be accepted.
Item 1.4
The Court in this regard is of the opinion that Clause 5.13 of the
Company/Union Agreement offers sufficient safeguard to the Company
against a possible further extension of overtime relating to the
reduction in hours and recommends that this formula should apply
for 1 year following which it may be reviewed in the light of
experience of its application.
Item 1.5
Having regard to the practice applying to the 40-hour week the
Court takes the view that the Company's proposal in this respect
is reasonable and recommends that it be accepted.
Item 2.1
Insofar as this applies the same criterion to part-time workers as
full-time workers in Item 1.5 above the Court recommends that it
be accepted.
Item 3.2
As by definition the arrangement is for a reduction in the weekly
working hours and the favoured means for day workers is the
reintroduction of a shorter working day there is no sustainable
case for transfer of that reduction to another day of the week
where the day chosen is fixed and becomes on occasions a
non-working day.
Date of Implementation.
The Court recommends that the proposals for the reduction in hours
as modified by the above recommendation be introduced with effect
from 1st October, 1990.
Division: Mr O'Connell Mr Brennan Ms Ni Mhurchu
Text of Document__________________________________________________________________
CD90419 RECOMMENDATION NO. LCR13042
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACTS, 1946 TO 1976
SECTION 67
PARTIES: IRISH FERTILIZER INDUSTRIES LIMITED
(REPRESENTED BY THE FEDERATION OF IRISH EMPLOYERS)
AND
SERVICES INDUSTRIAL PROFESSIONAL TECHNICAL UNION
NATIONAL ENGINEERING ELECTRICAL TRADES UNION
AMALGAMaTED ENGINEERING UNION
ELECTRICAL TRADES UNION
SUBJECT:
1. Dispute concerning the implementation of a 39 hour week.
BACKGROUND:
2. The Programme for National Recovery (P.N.R.) commenced at
I.F.I. on 1st March, 1988 and is due to expire on 28th February,
1991. All adjustments to base rates due under the Programme have
been applied.
3. In April, 1989 the Unions sought a meeting to discuss the
implementation of a 39-hour week for those workers whose normal
working week is at or above 40 hours. The number of workers
concerned are 4 shift workers: 245, 2 shift workers: 12 and 98 day
workers. A meeting was held on 23rd January, 1990 (a date
suitable to the parties). Arising from the meeting the Company
put forward proposals for the implementation of a 39 hour week by
letter dated 31st January, 1990.
4. These proposals did not meet the Unions' aspirations and the
matter was referred to the conciliation service of the Labour
Court on 1st March, 1990. Conciliation conferences were held on
the 15th of May, and the 11th and 29th June, 1990. Following the
first conciliation conference the Company put forward revised
proposals (attached as an appendix to this recommendation). In
responding to these proposals the Unions indicated that there were
six items which they regarded as major obstacles to reaching a
settlement. These items were clauses 1.3, 1.4., 1.5, 2.1, 3.2 and
the operative date. As no agreement was reached on these items
the parties consented to a referral to the Labour Court for
investigation and recommendation. A Court hearing was held on
10th September, 1990.
UNIONS' ARGUMENTS:
5. 1. The Unions consider that the Company's approach to these
negotiations is that it is attempting to use the 39-hour week
issue as a vehicle for the introduction of rationalisation
measures and the alteration of long-established and agreed
terms and conditions of employment.
2. The Unions find clause 1.3. unacceptable because of its
restrictiveness both in terms of excluding weekends and in
confining the taking of time off to day shifts. As the
time-off is accrued by the workers concerned when working
night shift, weekends and days there should be a corresponding
entitlement to take time-off during any of these periods
subject to the general provision that the arrangement for time
off would be by agreement locally. A further restriction is
contained in the Company's proposal that the accrued time-off
should be 48 hours maximum in a year. It is the Unions'
contention that the co-operative and flexible approach of
workers in agreeing to an accumulation of hours to suit the
Company should entitle them to 52 hours as has been conceded
by many other employers.
3. In relation to Clause 1.4 it took some time for the
Company to detail how it proposed to operate the system.
Different arrangements are proposed for the different Plants
at Arklow and Marino. With regard to the Arklow situation the
Unions are prepared to have Clause 5.13 of the Company/Union
Agreement "Absence on an operating unit" apply provided the
accrued time-off is not confined to Monday to Friday but taken
by agreement locally. The Company's intentions regarding the
Marino Plant represent an attempt to change manning and cover
arrangements using the 39 hour-week as an excuse (details
supplied to the Court). The Unions are quite prepared to have
the accrued time-off taken by agreement provided such
agreement is not unreasonably withheld by the Company. Cover
will be provided through the spare man as currently operates.
The Unions do not accept the Company's objection to this
suggestion that it would involve the creation of additional
overtime as the Unions consider that there is adequate spare
capacity to cover the additional time off created through the
39-hour week. (details supplied to the Court).
4. The Unions consider that clause 1.5 is restrictive in that
it attempts to claw back the benefit to which workers are
entitled. No similar penalty would apply in the case of day
workers who would lose working time over their normal week,
and it is unacceptable that such a practice would apply in the
case of shift workers.
5. The Unions position regarding clause 2.1 is that the
part-time workers should benefit in all respects on a pro rata
basis to the full-time employees.
5. 6. The proposals in relation to clause 3.2 are acceptable
subject to provision for the full benefit of the reduction in
hours which would require that where the short day, Friday, is
a non-working day the benefit of the hour off should be
transferred to another day in that week. The Unions are also
of the view that the proposal that a day's pay in all cases
would be one fifth of a week's pay could be a recipe for
future problems. Given that it has already been agreed that
the hourly rate should be one thirty-ninth of weekly pay the
daily rate should reflect the number of hours worked.
7. Very many agreements provided for the 39-hour week to take
effect roughly twelve months into the three-year term of the
P.N.R. As the commencement date of the P.N.R. in this Company
was 1st March, 1988 the Unions feel that a reasonable
compromise in the spirit of the Framework Agreement would be
the middle point of the three-year agreement i.e. 1st
September, 1989. The Company's offer of the 1st of October,
1990 is unrealistic and totally unacceptable, taking no
account of the very much earlier dates of application
negotiated in respect of many other Employments and reflecting
once again the negative approach of the Company to its
obligations under the P.N.R. and the Framework agreement.
COMPANY'S ARGUMENTS:
6. 1. The Company's Position on the Points Rejected
Item 1.3 "The accrued hours will be taken at an agreed time
while on day shift work - Monday to Friday - up to
a maximum of 48 hours in the year".
The Company proposes 48 hours on the basis that
because of annual holidays shift workers have a
minimum of 4 weeks for which no hour should accrue.
Taking the accrued hour Monday to Friday while on
days is sought by the Company to facilitate the
avoidance of over-time to cover, when necessary,
absence arising from accrued hours leave.
Item 1.4 "Accrued hours will not qualify for overtime cover
associated with holidays, and full co-operation and
flexibility is required to achieve this."
"Clause 5 Overtime" of the Framework Agreement on
Hours of Work states "It is the objective of this
Agreement that any reduction in working hour (time)
agreed at the level of the employment be effected
without recourse to overtime working."
Under the clause 1.4 the Company is seeking the
co-operation of the Union to achieve the objective
of Clause 5 of the Framework Agreement.
The Union side maintained that current manning
levels were sufficient to cater for the additional
leave without involving overtime working.
Management reject that position on the basis that
operating with existing leave, and other
non-attendance, overtime is being worked to provide
the necessary manning despite the presence of an
existing spare man.
Item 1.5 "In any week where one or more shifts is not worked
but excluding holidays or accrued hours leave, then
no accrued leave (1 hour) will apply for that
week."
The Company believes that this is a logical
approach to the application of the accrued hours
method for shift workers because the introduction
of a 39-hour week means that the same basic weekly
salary previously paid for 40 hours work will in
future be applied where 39 hours are worked.
However, because it is not practical to confine
actual hours worked to 40 or 39 in a continuous
shift cycles, the accrued hour method is proposed.
Item 2.1 "The maximum of 48 hours per annum as outlined for
full-time shift working will apply pro rata to
part-time shift workers. Similarly in any week
where one or more shifts is not worked but
excluding holidays then no accrued leave will apply
for that week."
This section is only restating for part-time
workers the situation proposed for full-time shift
workers.
Item 3.2 "When Friday is an unworked day no reduction will
occur in the working time for other days in that
week."
The Unions have stated that they did not want to
work 12 minutes less each day but wanted a fixed
short day and that day to be Friday. Since the
Company has now agreed to a fixed short day on
Friday it believes it is justified in rejecting the
Unions' proposal to have what would amount to a
fixed and transferable short day.
2. The concession of a reduction in working time in an
industry where the majority of employees are
involved in continuous shift working can be very
expensive and complex to organise. The Company
believes that the final position put to the Unions
was reasonable in that it was aimed at introducing
a reduction in working time and seeking the
co-operation of the employees to reduce the
additional costs involved, and as such was in
keeping with both the spirit and intent of the
P.N.R. and the Framework Agreement.
RECOMMENDATION:
7. The Court has considered the submissions made by the parties
in relation to the outstanding issues arising from the
implementation of the reduction in working hours and recommends as
follows:
Item 1.3
Insofar as the agreement related to the reduction in weekly
working hours the total annual reduction in hours worked is forty
eight and the Court therefore takes the view that the Company's
proposal in this respect should be accepted.
Item 1.4
The Court in this regard is of the opinion that Clause 5.13 of the
Company/Union Agreement offers sufficient safeguard to the Company
against a possible further extension of overtime relating to the
reduction in hours and recommends that this formula should apply
for 1 year following which it may be reviewed in the light of
experience of its application.
Item 1.5
Having regard to the practice applying to the 40-hour week the
Court takes the view that the Company's proposal in this respect
is reasonable and recommends that it be accepted.
Item 2.1
Insofar as this applies the same criterion to part-time workers as
full-time workers in Item 1.5 above the Court recommends that it
be accepted.
Item 3.2
As by definition the arrangement is for a reduction in the weekly
working hours and the favoured means for day workers is the
reintroduction of a shorter working day there is no sustainable
case for transfer of that reduction to another day of the week
where the day chosen is fixed and becomes on occasions a
non-working day.
Date of Implementation.
The Court recommends that the proposals for the reduction in hours
as modified by the above recommendation be introduced with effect
from 1st October, 1990.
~
Signed on behalf of the Labour Court,
John O'Connell
___________________
12th October, 1990.
M. D. / M. F. Deputy Chairman.
APPENDIX
39 HOUR WEEK - PROPOSAL
1. 4 Cycle Shift Working
1.1 The 12 hour shift rota applying at I.F.I. results in shift
workers working a 36 hour week followed by a 48 hour week.
It is acknowledged that this rota constitutes a 42 hour week
on average.
1.2 In a week where 36 hours or 48 hours are worked one hour will
accrue.
1.3 The accrued hours will be taken at an agreed time while on
day shift-work - Monday to Friday - up to a maximum of 48
hours in a year.
1.4 Accrued hours will not qualify for overtime cover associated
with holidays, and full co-operation and flexibility is
required to achieve this.
1.5 In any week where one or more shifts is not worked but
excluding holidays or accrued hours leave, then no accrued
leave (1 hour) will apply for that week.
2. Part - time Shift Working.
2.1 The maximum of 42 hours per annum as outlined for full time
shift working will apply pro rate to part time shift workers.
Similarly in any week where one or more shifts is not worked
but excluding holidays then no accrued leave will apply for
that week.
2.2 Accrued leave will be taken at an agreed time when the shift
worker returns to normal day working.
3. Day & 2 Shift Workers ( Monday to Friday )
3.1 These workers will work seven hours on Friday.
3.2 When Friday is an un-worked day no reduction will accrue in
the working time for other days in that week.
3.3 Friday will rank equal to other working days in respect of
holidays and any other circumstances.
3.4 A day's pay in all cases will be 1/5 of a week's pay.
4. The Union side will endeavour to achieve the present
production over the 40 hours within the 39 hours.
4.1 Application Date
Subject to acceptance of the terms outlined in these
proposals the Company is prepared to implement the 39 hour
week from Monday October 1st 1990.
5. Administration of Accrued Hours - Shift Workers
5.1 For the period October 1st to December 31st 1990 a total of
12 accrued hours will apply. Clause 1.5 will not apply to
this period.
5.2 In 12 months from January 1st 1991 to December 31st 1991 a
maximum of 48 hours will apply and this will be reduced by
the terms of Clause 1.5 for the period October 1st 1990 to
December 31st 1990.
5.3 In 12 months from January 1st 1992 to December 31st 1992 the
reduction in the 48 accrued hours will result from the
application of clause 1.5 to year January - December 1991.
5.4 By the above arrangement shift workers can be informed in
January each year of the holiday and accrued hours
entitlement for the year ahead.
6. Part-time Shift Working
The 48 hours maximum accrued hours for full time shift
workers will apply pro rata to part time shift working. Any
reduction due to absence will be calculated at the end of the
shift period.