New collective bargaining laws that will fundamentally change Ireland’s industrial landscape

As companies in Ireland’s technology, food, pharmaceutical and consulting sectors announce widespread layoffs affecting hundreds of employees, many companies are having lengthy and sometimes messy discussions with affected employees. Unions across the country have announced they are engaging in a consultation process and working to ensure workers receive the best possible redundancy. Ireland has had a very busy year.

The Financial Services Union, Ireland’s largest trade union specializing in the tech, banking and financial sectors, will more than double its membership in 2023, going from just 40 member companies to more than 140 in just six months. increased to

Similarly, 2023 has been a significant year for trade union Siptu, which has been grappling with large-scale job cuts following the closure of the Tara mine and food retailer Iceland.

However, Irish trade union rights have been said to be significantly weaker within the EU, despite demands at a time of large-scale redundancies.

Their presence in the non-public sector is often said to be ‘given by private employers’.

This means that during the redundancy process, employee representatives may consult with unions in advance, but are often forced to negotiate severance pay with the employer themselves.

Furthermore, many believe that the 30-day consultation period that companies are required to undertake in the case of collective redundancies is too short, putting too much pressure on employees to act voluntarily.

But this year may see fundamental changes in the future of collective bargaining. As Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) general secretary Owen Reidy puts it, 2024 could represent a “huge strategic opportunity” for Ireland’s industrial landscape.

At the end of 2022, the European Parliament adopted a directive on minimum wages and collective bargaining, which was subsequently signed into law.

The Proper Minimum Wages Directive, which should be in force into Irish law by November this year, assigns a key role to collective bargaining and states that “all workers and employers must protect their wages. “The right to organize into local, national, and international organizations.” Economic and social benefits and the right to collective bargaining. ”

“It’s called the Proper Minimum Wage Directive, but it’s really about collective bargaining,” Reidy explains.

“This applies across the European Union. It says if you want to tackle poverty, if you want to have a more equal Europe, you need to support collective bargaining.”

If the directive becomes law (consultations are expected to begin later this month), it would remove some barriers to union membership and allow workers to join more consistently. .

Furthermore, the Directive aims to achieve a collective bargaining coverage rate of 80% in all member states, and countries with a coverage rate above 80% have “a small proportion of low-wage workers and a high minimum wage”. We have confirmed that this is highly likely.

Countries that fall below this number are required to provide a framework for more enabling conditions for collective bargaining, develop action plans to promote collective bargaining and increase coverage.

Although the Directive does not set a specific deadline for adopting an action plan, the European Commission requires Member States with collective bargaining rates below 80% to develop an action plan “at the latest” by the end of 2025. ing.

Currently, the average coverage rate in the EU is just over 60%. But in Ireland, that number drops to just 34%.

“The aim is to increase participation rates, to increase the proportion of workers covered by collective bargaining agreements, whether they are unionized or not,” Reidy said. irish examiner.

“Another objective is to promote the right to collective bargaining. Technically we don’t have that in Ireland, but this is very ground-breaking.” As General Secretary Ikuto explains: If employees decide to bargain collectively within the Irish private sector, they have no legal right to do so.

“Employees have no right to collective bargaining unless they can convince their employers that it is best to join them through unionization or industrial strike action. In the 21st century, that’s just crazy. It’s the situation.

I have heard from workers that their employers do not want to engage unions, instead recommending that they be represented by lawyers who are paid by the employer to work for them.

“It’s like a soccer match where one team sets the rules and hires the referee, and Ireland are the outlier in that situation.”

Just over a third of Irish employees belong to a trade union, but a survey conducted by researchers at University College Dublin found that 44% of non-union respondents favored forming a trade union. It turned out that he was willing to vote. Among young people, that number rises to 68%.

Under this proposal, employers would be able to bargain at the sector level, allowing unionized workers to enjoy the same benefits of collective action and, as Reidy explains, reducing the industry-wide The agreement would limit issues such as pay disparities, he said. It could be “radical and transformative” for the Irish economy.

“Employers and employees will form their own representative bodies to discuss agreements on wages, sick pay, holidays, etc. These will outline basic terms and conditions of employment that will be applied as minimum standards across the industry. indicate.”

“It takes wages away from competition and creates a level playing field. It also means employers and unions bargain for mutually beneficial agreements.”

So what does this mean for union members if the directive goes into effect? ​​According to Reidy, the legislation, if signed into law later this year, will remove significant barriers and increase recognition. Further increasing the degree of membership will not only expand the scope of coverage but also further increase membership density.

“Until now, unions in the private sector have not technically had the right to exist, and their membership has been maintained in an environment entirely dictated by private employers.

“The union has performed extremely well in such a hostile environment. The fact that we continue to stand our ground in these circumstances is extremely important.”

“Properly replacing this directive will require a major cultural shift across all government departments, state agencies, and private businesses,” Reidy said.

“There is no room for vague bystanders. They have to care if we are to take this directive seriously.”