LCR23001

PARTIES:

DIVISION:

SUBJECT:

Pay Claim

BACKGROUND:

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 2 May 2024 in accordance with Section 26(1) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1990.

A Labour Court hearing took place on 27 June 2024.

UNION'S ARGUMENT:

The Union are seeking a pay rise of 12.5% for Grade 1 Employees, 6% for all other grades and a €30 weekly allowance for all employees with greater than 5 years’ service in the Employer’s Killygordon site.

EMPLOYER'S ARGUMENT:

The Company proposes to offer the employees a 3.25% pay rise backdated to 1 January 2024 plus a €200 tax free Homeland voucher (pro rata) at years end of 2024.

RECOMMENDATION:

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

The Court notes the history of pay bargaining in this employment where the Society, which employees approximately 700 employees across different work sites, recognises three trade unions and where, historically, a universally applicable pay deal has applied across all sites.

In 2023, Unite the Union sought, in accordance with the terms of its procedural agreement with the Society, to negotiate a separate pay agreement on behalf of its members at the Killygordon site. Unite the Union is the sole union on the Killygordon site.

The Court notes that, as part of a separate collective bargaining process, a one year pay deal providing a 3.25% increase effective from 1 January 2024 with a €200 tax free homeland voucher payable at the end of 2024 was accepted by the other two representative bodies on behalf of their members. The terms of that agreement were applied to all employees (556) excluding employees on the Killygordon work site (144).  A proposal by the Society to apply those same terms was rejected by Unite the Union members at the Killygordon site.  

Unite the Union now seeks to reach a pay agreement with the Society on terms which differ to the terms agreed and accepted by the other two representative bodies representing members in the employment. It appears that were the Court to recommend concession of the Unite the Union’s pay claim, any acceptance by the parties of that Recommendation would have consequences for the terms of the agreement concluded with the other two representative bodies.

The role of the Court in collective disputes is to support the effective conduct of industrial relations and to provide its opinion, when requested to do so, in the form of a Recommendation where parties have been unable to find agreement. In the Court’s view, it is difficult to see how a Recommendation that deviates from the pay terms accepted by the other two representative bodies would advance the effective conduct of industrial relations in this employment.

The Court notes Unite the Union’s position that it is representing its members in accordance with the terms of its procedural agreement with the Society.  The conduct of good industrial relations requires the exercise by all parties of realism and pragmatism, and, in the view of the Court, it may be helpful for the parties to engage to consider how future collective bargaining might be developed for future pay round bargaining.

In the view of the Court, it is in the interest of good industrial relations between the parties that the current dispute matter be brought to resolution as soon as possible.

The Court notes that the pay claim lodged by Unite the Union in 2023 was based on inflation and the performance of the company at the time, as well as the anticipated rise in the National Minimum Wage, and that circumstances have changed since that claim was lodged. 

The Court is cognisant that in 2023, on foot of a proposal made by the Workplace Relations Commission, a weekly allowance of €50 was introduced to all pay grades at the Killygordon site as an extraordinary measure in response to specific circumstances around the introduction of a new working model. At conciliation the Society offered to consolidate that allowance into basic pay and then apply the proposed increase of 3.25%.

Having regard to all of the circumstances of this dispute, the Court recommends that the offer of the Society to members at the Killygordon site to (i) consolidate the €50 weekly allowance into basic pay, (ii) apply an increase of 3.25% to the consolidated rate of pay with an effective date of 1 January 2024, and (iii) pay a €200 tax free Homeland Voucher (pro rate) at the end of 2024, be accepted by the union as the most reasonable outcome to the current dispute that can pragmatically be achieved at this time.

The Court so recommends.

	Signed on behalf of the Labour Court
	Katie Connolly
TH	______________________
8th July 2024	Deputy Chairman

NOTE

Enquiries concerning this Recommendation should be addressed to Therese Hickey, Court Secretary.