FULL RECOMMENDATION
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACTS, 1946 TO 1990 SECTION 26(1), INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACT, 1990 PARTIES : IARNROD EIREANN - AND - SERVICES INDUSTRIAL PROFESSIONAL TECHNICAL UNION NATIONAL BUS AND RAIL UNION DIVISION : Chairman: Mr Hayes Employer Member: Mr Murphy Worker Member: Mr Shanahan |
1. Step-aside money.
BACKGROUND:
2. The Unions' claim is for 6 weeks' "step-aside money" for 14 staff working on the permanent way system. Under the 2000 Company/Union agreement certain duties, including flagging, PICOP and ES, are exclusive to CCE/permanent way staff.. Step-aside money was introduced to allow these duties to be undertaken by non-core staff in certain circumstances. In return for cooperating with redeployment of non-core staff permanent way staff would receive a payment of 6 hours' additional pay per week while the project continued.
One such project was the Kildare Route Project (KRP) which commenced in 2008 and finished on 6th May, 2011. New Works staff undertook the project. It was agreed that step-aside money would be paid during the project to staff in Division 3. The Unions maintain that other projects were being carried out during the KRP. One such project was an Accessibility Project in Kildare Station which began in mid 2010 and ran for 6 weeks following the ending of the KRP on 6th May, 2011. The Unions believe that as the Accessibility Project began during the KRP the step-aside money should be paid for the final six weeks after 6th May, 2011. They believe that the Company changed the description of the work for the six weeks so that it could not attract the step-aside money. The Company has rejected that claim. It maintains that the two Projects were entirely different and, indeed, the Accessibility Projects at other locations had been ongoing for a number of years without step-aside money being either claimed or paid. Whilst a mistake did occur in the week following the ending of the KRP and step-aside money was paid for one week, this was a one-off incident which did not recur.
The dispute was referred to the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) and a conciliation conference took place. As the parties did not reach agreement, the dispute was referred to the Labour Court on the 26th August, 2010, in accordance with Section 26(1) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1990. A Labour Court hearing took place on the 29th November, 2011, in Kilkenny. The following is the Court's recommendation:
RECOMMENDATION:
The Court has carefully considered the submissions of both parties in this case.
The Court finds that the Accessibility Project and the Kildare Route Project, though undertaken in parallel with each other for a time, were nevertheless quite distinct items of capital expenditure and were in no way interdependent. The Court further finds that Irish Rail agreed to pay the workers affected the step-aside-money payment in respect mof the Kildare Route Project only. Accordingly, the Court does not recommend concession of what in effect is a fresh claim to have it belatedly extended to the Accessibility Project also.
The Court so recommends.
Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
Brendan Hayes
9th December, 2011.______________________
CON.Deputy Chairman
NOTE
Enquiries concerning this Recommendation should be addressed to Ciaran O'Neill, Court Secretary.