LCR22843

1.Pay / Overtime / Annual Leave / Pension.

BACKGROUND:

2.This matter 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 matter was referred to the Labour Court on 1 September 2023 in accordance with Section 26(1) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1990. A Labour Court hearing took place on 9 October 2023.

UNION’S ARGUMENTS:

3. 1. The Union states that a pay offer from the Employer is not an adequate.

2. The Union seek increases in Employer pension contributions.

3. The Union request that two additional days of annual leave should be conceded in lieu of the new public holiday awarded in 2022.

EMPLOYER'S ARGUMENTS:

4. 1.The Employer states that due to the nature of the service that is provided there is no opportunity to recover any increases in costs by generating additional revenue.

2. The Employer are cognisant that they and their Employees provide essential services to the State and the contract with the State makes no provision for cost increases of the scale claimed by the Union.

3.The Employer states that the safety critical environment in which Employees work is such as to mean any restriction on the capacity to provide training would be a very significant issue.

RECOMMENDATION:

The Court has given very careful consideration to the written and oral submissions of the parties.

The dispute between the parties takes place against the backdrop of extensive engagement which has had the result of agreement being reached with other groups in the employment. The Court has earlier issued Recommendations as part of the process of engagement involving other bargaining groups. The history of engagement in the company is one of broadly parallel pay movement across the various bargaining groups in the employment.

Having regard to all of the circumstances of the employment including the contractual circumstances of the company in Ireland and the nature of agreement concluded with other bargaining groups, the Court recommends that this dispute should be resolved on the following terms:

Pay

Pay increases to apply as follows:

• 1st January 2022 basic pay increase of 2.5%

  1st January 2023 basic pay increase of 2%

  1st January 2024 basic pay increase of 2%

  1st January 2025 basic pay increase of 2%

  1^stJanuary 2026 basis pay increase of 2%

Pension contribution by employer to increase as follows:

• 1st January 2022 pension increase of 1%

  1st January 2023 pension increase of 1%

  1st January 2024 pension increase of 1%

  1st January 2025 pension increase of 1%

  1st January 2026 pension increase of 1%

  • Allowances will not be included in the calculations of pensions from 1st January 2023.

• Overtime rates to be increased as follows (it is noted that the engineers are the only bargaining group in the employment in receipt of overtime payments):

  Monday to Friday – 1.5 times the rate

  Saturday, Sunday and public holidays – 1.66 times the rate

Leave adjustment

• Leave in respect of public holidays be increased to 11 days for this group having regard to arrangements already in place prior to the creation of a 10^thPublic Holiday annually This adjustment to have effect from the year that the 10^thPublic Holiday was introduced.

The Court so recommends.

	Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
	Kevin Foley
CO'R	______________________
20 October 2023	Chairman