“I see you’re swapping the red flag for the union jack now.” This was shouted out the window to strikers by the BATU General Secretary Paddy O'Shaughnessy on the first day of our strike. The union jack jibe relates to our union Unite/ATGWU being a British-based union. Eight weeks later, Paddy escalated his campaign from pathetic jibes to driving into picketers and supporters who were protesting at union head office.

We are on strike following the forced redundancy on May Day of two union officials, without criteria or negotiation, and the threat of imposed pay cuts and detrimental changes to conditions of office staff. The general secretary whose union members rely on the policy of "first in last out" stated that this policy does not apply to union staff.

The strike is raising a challenge to both BATU members and trade unionists in general. BATU members who have been hugely supportive of the strikers are now faced with the prospect of being represented on site by scabs and strike breakers or fighting a battle to transform their union. At a time when the Construction Industry Federation is on the offensive under the leadership of former PD Tom Parlon to drive down workers wages, members need officials who will fight and defend construction workers. Not union officials that pass pickets, sacks their employees, slashes wages and conditions, and refuses proper union recognition to its own workforce!

For the broader trade union movement, it’s intolerable that BATU General Secretary Paddy O'Shaughnessy remains a member of the executive of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions - a position which will see him negotiate the pay and conditions of thousands of workers at the upcoming pay talks.

Incredibly, ICTU refused to hear a complaint from Unite which stated that BATU was bringing the movement into disrepute by the passing of pickets and treatment of staff. ICTU said that this was a matter between an employer and employees and not therefore appropriate for complaint to ICTU under section 41 of its constitution!

 ICTU and other union leaders must not be allowed to get away with taking a neutral position on this dispute – why are they not publicly supporting six workers who have stood on the picket line since 9 May in defence of union principles? At this point we are appealing directly to trade union members to pressurise ICTU to take action. A campaign involving strikers and supporters from BATU and other unions will be launched calling for Paddy O'Shaughnessy to be suspended from the Executive of ICTU. A petition will be launched amongst trade union members calling for this and a model motion which can be raised at branches is available.

-   For more information on how you can assist our campaign and get copies of the petition and model motion please phone Susan Fitzgerald 087 6273581.

- Visit the picket line at BATU head office Blessington Street, Dublin.

- Please make donations to the strike fund at Permanent TSB, Phibsboro, Dublin 7, Account No: 13035480 Sort Code: 990603.

The following is an extract from a letter the BATU strikers have sent to David Begg, ICTU general secretary.

"However we also have the obvious contradiction that four officials of BATU, a Congress affiliated union, are daily crossing the official pickets of another Congress affiliate and, once in the building, are attempting to do the work of the strikers. There is only one word that we know of in the trade union vocabulary to describe people who act in such a way. The word is – scab.
 
"The fact that paid union officials are crossing an official picket is deeply damaging and potentially very embarrassing, not only to BATU, but to the entire trade union movement. This situation is compounded by the fact that Paddy O’Shaughnessy is a sitting Executive member of Congress….

"We feel that the only way to resolve this, and to avoid any damage to the trade union movement as a whole, is for ICTU to suspend Paddy O’Shaughnessy from his position on the Executive of Congress and from any other position in which he might act as a representative of ICTU. This suspension should last at least until there is a favourable resolution of our dispute. We hope that you will agree with this proposal and that Congress will act accordingly.”

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Electricians working in the building industry were due an increase of €1.05 per hour (4.9%) on 1 April last under their analogue agreement. This is part of the Registered Employment Agreement (REA) which governs rates and conditions for the electrical contracting industry. The Technical Engineering and Electrical Union (TEEU) is a party to this agreement with the main employers’ organisations.

The “race to the bottom” has spawned a new employer’s organisation - National Electrical Contractors Ireland (NECI). This organisation does not represent major contractors, but its desire is to drive down the wages and conditions of workers in the industry, particularily in house wiring and small contracts. The TEEU have succeeded in several cases against their member companies, who pay well below the union rate and don’t have their workers in the CIF sick pay and pension schemes. Smarting from these defeats, they are attempting to hit back.

A Labour Court Hearing was held on 24 May to ratify the wage increase. The NECI rabble attended, complete with high paid briefs and succeeded in persuading the chair of the court, Kevin Duffy, to delay the ratification for one month to allow them to make a case against the REA. A couple of weeks later they persuaded the High Court to grant an injunction preventing the Labour Court making the award until they brought a High Court case against the REA. In a triumphalist report on the Labour Court hearings, NECI comment that Polish Contractors are paying less than half the union rate “and are entitled to do so”.

Union officials have repeatedly ignored pleas from the membership to tackle the deteriorating conditions on sites over the last number of years, in a period of “boom”. That said, it is vital that the union now mobilises the membership to fight this most serious of threats.

There is to be a national postal ballot for industrial action. This must be prepared for by a mobilisation of the full time apparatus, the branch committees and action committees. As many sites as possible must be visited, leaflets distributed and meetings held. The membership must be convinced of the seriousness of this threat and also of the seriousness of the union to fight that fight to the bitter end. There should be no underestimation of the importance of this battle, nor only to electricians, but to all other REAs.

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The Socialist interviewed Gavin, an out of work carpenter and BATU member, about what life’s like for a building worker now:

“There's no work - I mean it’s gone from a situation where you were constantly employed to this. I started my apprenticeship back in the ‘90s at the start of the boom and I’ve always been employed. I’ve never had to sign on. Just to be laid off is a big strain.

“The first thing you notice is the finances. I’ve a mortgage and a car to pay off. The kids are off for three months now and you have to keep them amused - you can’t just kick them out onto the street. We went swimming yesterday and for a family, three kids and two adults was €25 – that’s a big chunk out of less than €400 a week – food, electricity, mobile phone bills, the whole lot.

“The contraction in the construction industry is being used by employers to single out workers who are organising migrant and Irish workers. They’re going to use it to further victimise vulnerable workers, like illegal people, who they can underpay. Employers are able to do this, because the trade unions haven’t been trying to recruit people, to organise people.

“I’ve done interviews for other jobs. At one of the interviews I was told - your hours are eight ‘til five, five days a week, but if we have to finish a contract, you might have to work late, which isn’t considered overtime, it’s not paid for. You also might be asked to work Saturdays as well, again that’s not overtime! Basically you’re working for nothing. The minimum wage has become the maximum wage now for a lot of companies.

“I went to the social welfare office down the road, and it’s up to your local officer to pay you for the first seven or eight weeks. That’s because the volumes going in are so big, that it takes that long to process you. What struck me in the office was that there’s a window at the counter and you have to shout all your details through. The fellow in front of me was explaining how his wife was in psychiatric care and everyone could hear. There’s no privacy and no dignity.”

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Hibernian last month announced that they intended to sack 580 of its workers in Ireland and transfer their jobs to Bangalore in India. The average worker working in Indian call centres is paid €7,185 per year, 25% of the Irish average industrial wage.

This announcement came after record profits made by Hibernian. Last year, Hibernian in Ireland made €352.9 million in profits, this was a massive 86% increase on the previous year and represents a staggering €160,000 per worker!

These attacks come after attacks on pensions in Hibernian that effectively meant a 5% pay cut for all its workers, this pay cut was sold to workers as a means of defending their jobs and their pensions.

The unions should not accept the bosses’ logic that pay cuts, outsourcing and redundencies somehow save jobs or defend existing conditions. The very opposite is the case. Unions allowing limited attacks gives the bosses the green light to proceed with further attacks in the future.

If these job losses at Hibernian were to go ahead, they would have a huge knock on effect for all workers, particularly for those in the insurance and the finance industry. It would give a green light for bosses to further intensify the “race to the bottom” in the industry. It is essential that the unions oppose this agenda and make a stand.

There are plans for industrial action now in Hibernian. Bank of Ireland workers have also recently overwhelmingly voted in favour of strike action in July over cuts to promised bonus payments. Union leaders need to use this industrial action, not just as a means to secure better redundancy deals, but to actually defeat these attacks and launch a real campaign against the “race to the bottom”.

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