FULL RECOMMENDATION
SECTION 26(1), INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACT, 1990 PARTIES : FIRST CHOICE CREDIT UNION (REPRESENTED BY IRISH BUSINESS AND EMPLOYERS' CONFEDERATION) - AND - SERVICES INDUSTRIAL PROFESSIONAL TECHNICAL UNION DIVISION : Chairman: Ms Jenkinson Employer Member: Ms Doyle Worker Member: Ms Tanham |
1. Pay, Travel Time & Subsistence Payments, and Pay Equalisation.
BACKGROUND:
2. This dispute could not be resolved at local level and was the subject of a conciliation conference under the auspices of the Workplace Relations Commission. As agreement was not reached, the dispute was referred to the Labour Court on 22 June 2018 in accordance with Section 26(1) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1990. A Labour Court hearing took place on 6 September 2018.
UNION’S ARGUMENTS:
3. 1. A 1% pay rise is wholly unacceptable to their members. The Union is seeking a 2.5% pay rise from January 2018 and 2.5% from January 2019.
2. The Union is also seeking a 30cents per kilometre for all travel for their members to include subsistence at civil service rates.
3. Pay equalisation should be paid in full effective from 1 April 2017.
EMPLOYER'S ARGUMENTS:
4. 1. The Credit Union has offered a 1% increase in the rate of pay from 1 April 2018 for 12 months and a 1% increase from 1 April 2019 for 12 months. This offer is fair and reasonable.
2. According to Revenue rules there is no entitlement to mileage expenses for travel to and from a normal place of work. The Credit Union has offered 50% of Revenue mileage rates for inter-office journeys for those staff whose normal place of work is not at that office to which they are travelling.
3. The claim for equalisation is spurious and without merit.
RECOMMENDATION:
On behalf of its members in the Credit Union, the Union submitted three claims before the Court, (i) pay equalisation, (ii) travel & subsistence payments and travel time, and (iii) pay increase. The Court notes that these issues have been the subject of extensive discussion and negotiations for the past three years.
Background
The Credit Union has its head office in Castlebar and has branches in Achill, Ballyhaunis and Balla. The Union represents the Clerical Officer grade. Employees are required to travel to the sub office in Balla to cover agreed hours and since the merger of Ballyhaunis and Achill, these staff are required to work on certain days in the Castlebar office.
i.Pay Equalisation
The Union stated that as a result of the merger of offices and the requirement for those employees who worked in Ballyhaunis and Achill to provide cover in different branches, including the Castlebar office, it sought pay equalisation with the pay scales applicable to employees based in Castlebar. It sought assimilation onto the pay scales to reflect their length of service. The Union sought pay equalisation effective from 1stApril 2017.
Management stated that the Credit Union is going through very challenging times in terms of income generation and surplus, while at the same time it needs to invest in transforming the business model to maintain viability into the future. Therefore, it asserted that it could not afford the proposals put forward by the Union.
However, management stated that those employees who transferred from Ballyhaunis and Achill to Castlebar benefitted from a harmonisation of their conditions of employment, which included, inter alia, membership of the pension scheme, payment of VHI subscriptions, access to the sick pay scheme, etc. Management also stated that Ballyhaunis employees benefited from entrance to incremental scales, where previously none existed, which immediately brought them up to the next nearest point on the scale. Achill staff were already at higher level salaries so they would have lost if they had been assimilated onto the Castlebar scale. Therefore, the Company rejected the Union claim.
The Court notes that Management made an offer to the Union by letter dated 17thNovember 2017, which proposed to equalise all rates of pay for all branches by 1stApril 2018. The Court recommends in favour of this offer.
- ii.Travel, Travelling Time & Subsistence Payments
The Union stated that as a result of the merger and the requirement to travel to different offices employees are incurring extra travelling time and expense. It stated that there are 114.2 kilometres in a round trip from Achill to Castlebar which takes on average over an hour each way depending on traffic.
The Union sought travelling time and travel expenses for the time and costs involved. It sought 30 cents per kilometre for all travel incurred on company business, to include subsistence at civil service rates and payment from the time members leave their base or payment from when members leave their base.
Management disputed this claim for travelling time on the basis that for the employees concerned the requirement to be in different bases on different days is a requirement to be at their normal place of work, which they freely accepted on the transfer of the business in order to preserve their jobs. Management therefore submitted that the claim had no merit. It offered to pay 50% of the Revenue approved mileage rates for inter-office journeys, for those staff whose normal place is not at the office they are travelling to.
Management stated that it is not sustainable to pay subsistence to staff travelling inter-office as the cost is prohibitive. It proposed that subsistence expenses are removed.
The Court recommends that Management’s proposal to pay 50% of the Revenue approved mileage rates should be accepted for travel to the various offices, employees must report at the offices at their normal rostered starting times, and it recommends the removal of subsistence payments.
- iii.Pay Increase
The Union sought a pay increase for its’ members of 2½% from January 2018 and 2½% from January 2019.
Management offered to pay 1% increase in pay from 1stApril 2018 for 12 months and 1% increase from 1stApril 2019 for 12 months. It rejected the Union’s claim on the basis of its contention that staff had benefitted from pay increases each year during the recession and accordingly, along with increments, they received increases of between 36% and 43% in the past 10 years, at a time when inflation was negligible.
The Court recommends the following pay increases: -
- 2% from 1stApril 2018 for twelve months
2% from 1stApril 2019 for twelve months
Conclusion
In recommending the above, the Court is stating that both sides must consider this Recommendation as a composite package, in full and final settlement of all issues before the Court.
The Court so recommends.
Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
Caroline Jenkinson
18 September 2018______________________
MNDeputy Chairman
NOTE
Enquiries concerning this Recommendation should be addressed to Michael Neville, Court Secretary.