Siptu members working for Marine Terminals Limited (MTL) are to seek an all-out picket from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) at Dublin Port as the protest enters its second week tomorrow.
The trade union, which represents most of the 70 workers at MTL, placed pickets at the company's premises last Friday. It said the dispute was over attempts by the company to impose compulsory redundancies as well as reductions in pay and conditions for members.
The union said that when the company decided to make 19 staff members redundant earlier this year, it used its own selection criteria. Siptu said five workers were made redundant initially, and that on May 15th a further 14 were told by management that they were to be let go.
“On the same day, all other Siptu employees were written to telling them they must sign new contracts agreeing to pay cuts of between 14 and 18 per cent, or be sacked,” it said.
The union said that the company had placed the workforce on a 20-hour week and deployed new workers from Scotland and Northern Ireland to take up the slack.
Siptu’s Oliver McDonagh said the union remains available for talks but that since Peel Ports took over the Marine Terminal operations last year it has shown “a consistent unwillingness to treat with the union or accept agreed procedures for dealing with problems.”
“The only reason we are applying for an all-out picket is the absolute refusal of the company to engage with us,” Mr McDonagh added.
However, a spokesman for the company disputed Siptu’s claims saying the union “should stick to the facts”.
The spokesman said: “We’ve attended six meetings with them to try and reach agreement and recently won a Labour Court hearing which agreed we were within our rights to make 13 people redundant due to the economic downturn.
“It’s unrealistic to expect crane operators to earn up to €75,000 per year in the current economic crisis. We have offered up to €60,000 per annum, which has been rejected by the union, as has an offer of up to €75,000 redundancy," he said. "It’s unfortunate the union have called for an escalation of industrial actions they would be far better taking a more realistic attitude to discussions.”
Siptu accused the company of “grossly exaggerating” the amounts they were offering in redundancy payments to workers.
Mr McDonagh said: “Media reports have been citing the company as offering €75,000 in redundancy payments, but not one worker so far being made redundant has been offered that much.
“Of the 13 workers being made compulsorily redundant under the Peel Ports formula, so far two workers are being offered €70,000. . . . The average payment is €37,000.”
On Monday the company secured a renewal to the interim ex-parte injunction to prevent picketers from obstructing vehicles entering or leaving the cargo terminal. The spokesman added the company is "running smoothly" with 640 vehicle movements into and out of the port today.
