Major projects face blockades this summer

A KEY Government project expected to support thousands of local jobs on the Northside over the next three years is facing a summer of blockades over union complaints related to the terms and conditions of some workers employed by sub-contractors.

The Technical Engineering and Electrical Union (TEEU) has already carried out a one-hour blockade of the Grangegorman site that’s currently being transformed into a new city quarter.

Over 1,000 DIT students are due to arrive at a new student campus on the site this September. TEEU protestors blocked entrance to the site earlier this month and further blockades are expected to take place over the coming weeks.

The protests could also spread to other key Government project sites including a major development at St Patrick’s College in Drumcondra.

The TEEU claims that some electricians on the Grangegorman site are being employed at rates below those in the old electrical sector agreement. Registered employment agreements were struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court last May.

But the union believes that contracts made under the electrical sector agreement are still valid and says most contractors are paying the agreed rate.

However, it claims a number of sub-contractors aren’t paying this rate and are also not providing proper employee benefits.

“We’ve still got these agreements with the employers and we will insist that they are honoured until such time as they are changed,

? a union spokesperson said.

“Most employers have actually agreed with that but a small number haven’t.

?

The union fears that sub-contractors who pay lower rates may influence others to reduce wages for their workers and have asked the Department of Education and Skills, who fund both the Grangegorman and the St Patrick’s College projects, to intervene.

However, the Department insists it has nothing to do with contracts on site as they are made between the authorities of St Patrick’s and the Grangegorman Development Agency (GDA) with the main contractors.

“Similarly, the GDA and authorities at St Pat’s have no relationship with sub-contractors employed on the sites,

? a department spokesperson said.

The department confirmed that it had passed on complaints from the TEEU to the National Employment Rights Authority (NERA) who had sent inspectors to the sites.

“This Department contacted NERA in March when TEEU’s concerns were originally raised,

? the spokesperson said.

“A NERA inspector visited the Grangegorman site on March 26. NERA indicated that throughout the duration of the development it would carry out further inspections of the site due to its significance and scale.

“In relation to St Pat’s, CAS – the Department’s contracted service agency for carrying out random compliance audits – visited the site in October 2013. CAS carried out compliance checks on the main contractor and four sub-contractors on site at that time. No major issues were identified.

“The projects in question are a substantial part of the Government’s capital investment framework with the Grangegorman project a key element of the Government’s Economic Stimulus Package.

“The Department does not wish to see their progress impeded or delayed. As a consequence, the Department would like to see these matters resolved through normal industrial relations protocols.

?

However, following the blockade earlier this month, TEEU General Secretary Eamon Devoy indicated that the union was unhappy that no action had been taken following its complaint and called for further investigations.

“Meanwhile, the TEEU is mounting pickets to resolve the dispute,,

? he said.

Northside People spoke to one of the sub-contractors working on the sites who said that as far as he was concerned there was no dispute and he wasn’t really sure why the union’s blockades were taking place.

“They’re making assumptions but they’re incorrect,

? he stated.

“We have no dispute with the TEEU, we’ve no discussions with them and we’ve no contact with them. I’m not sure what their issues are but we’ve no issues with them

“We’re fully compliant and we passed several NERA inspections and we welcome them to come again. None of our staff supported the blockade and they don’t have any issues with their employment.

?