We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
IN MY JOB as a Trade Union Organiser, I often find myself saying “Ireland is different” when talking to colleagues who work for unions elsewhere in Europe.
Comparing Ireland with say France is like comparing apples with oranges.
In France, wages and terms and conditions at work are set down by a collective bargaining model, where workers have a voice on what happens in their jobs. Despite ongoing changes in the law, the vast majority of workers in France are covered by sectoral agreements which set standards for pay and terms and conditions at work.
According to the OCED, collective bargaining arrangements cover 98% of workers in Austria and 96% in Belgium.
Collective bargaining
In Ireland, however, the idea of setting down wages and conditions through collective bargaining is barely discussed. When the labour market is discussed at all, we generally deal with simplistic and often completely misleading debates about the public and private sector.
In reality, we have the weakest trade union recognition laws in Western Europe. Not only do we have very poor legislation for extending collective agreements, the very basis of our laws for even being part of a trade union are weak.
Incredibly, there is no legislation in place to guarantee trade union recognition in the Republic of Ireland. Even the UK, which generally is considered to have a “liberal market” approach to industrial relations, if the majority of workers want to be part of a union, a company must reach a recognition arrangement. But not here.
Legal backdrop
This legal backdrop has led to a situation where unions in Ireland are weaker than they ought to be. Our “voluntarist” approach to industrial relations is often referred to as an “opt in” system.
The problem is some employers are choosing to opt out, even when workers do want to be part of a union, as shown in the ongoing campaigning involving Mandate and Lloyds pharmacies.
We don’t hear near enough about the bread and butter issues of work-how much people are paid, what they should be paid, and how this should be regulated and managed.
Not a high wage nirvana
In truth, Ireland is not the high wage nirvana it is sometimes made out to be. TASC, the think tank for action on social change, estimate that 29% of working women are categorised as “low paid”. Our salaries are behind EU averages, despite occasional claims to the contrary from employer organisations.
In Northern Ireland, the situation is starker still. Invest NI deliberately stakes the claim that salaries in financial services in Northern Ireland are 40% below London and 30% below Dublin.
Even within companies, there are serious divides. Take the gender pay gap in financial services, for example; Morgan McKinley estimates that the pay gap stands at 29% in the sector.
Gap between salaries and rents
The CSO evidence suggests that pay has not kept pace with increases in productivity. Meanwhile, the gap between average house prices and rents and average salaries has exploded exponentially.
House prices in Ireland were remarkably stable until the mid-90s. In 1996, the average second house in Dublin was 3 times annual earnings. By 2016, average second hand house prices were 7.5 time average annual earnings.
Consider the gap that has opened up, and you get sense what has happened to wages in Ireland. Consider also that our childcare costs are the second highest in the OCED and you get a sense of the comparative weakness of workers’ earnings in Ireland.
For those concerned about widening inequality and the decline in real wages, there is a solution – join a trade union. The research shows that unionised workplaces are better paid. Some international studies have estimated the union premium to be has high as ten per cent.
A host of other benefits
Trade union membership has a host of other benefits. For example, trade union members have the capacity to challenge outcomes in the workplace which they deem to be unfair.
Research from the Financial Services Union (FSU) shows that Performance Related Pay (PRP) is often a major cause of frustration at work. With a union at your side, you can challenge PRP outcomes. Without a union, you have no independent voice.
A route to improved terms and conditions
Even in the absence of Government will to protect and uphold standards in the workplace through sectoral agreements that are the norm elsewhere in Europe, there is hope in that trade union membership offers a route to improved pay and terms and condition.
There has recently been an upsurge in activity in previously un-unionised sectors such as Archaeology, English Language teaching and parts of the Film and TV sector which were non-union. The progress made by pilot and cabin crew in Ryanair reflects a very real change-there are now very few “no go areas” for trade unions in Ireland.
The Financial Services union has noticed an upsurge in membership, and now has members in more than 50 companies.
All of this offers cause to believe that change can happen when workers get together and seek a better deal at work. Our relatively poor legal situation for collective bargaining and trade union recognition should change, but trade union membership will still lead to better outcomes at work.
Paul Dillon is an Organiser with the Financial Services Union. He also presents the Office Block podcast. The latest edition of the Podcast, dealing with pay, productivity and performance management is available at https://soundcloud.com/theofficeblock/episode-3-productivity-performance-and-pay-in-the-workplace. See @TheOBtweets and follow Paul at @pauldonaldillon
I used to work in a company where a section of the workforce were unionised. I honestly thought that the purpose of the union was to shut us down. The section that were unionised had some major grievance each month while the rest of us were happy in our jobs. It was a good company.
Since then I’ve upskilled constantly and have changed jobs. I’ll never join a union. I know what my rights are and prefer to get bonuses and pay rises based on merit rather than time served.
@Michael O’Neill: Well done Michael. You were proactive and did something positive to improve your situation. Unions pray on the “sence of entitlement” mentality and some people winge and whine about their situation but don’t have the balls or will to do anything significant about it. That’s where the unions in Ireland come in.
@Michael O’Neill: I absolutely agree with what you’re saying Michael. Unions create needless grievances a lot of the time and also create a sense of entitlement.
@Michael O’Neill: You “know what your rights are”.
Do you realise that the legal rights of workers in terms of paid annual leave, regulations regarding redundancy and unfair dismissal are all there because trade unions fought for them?
Trade Unions were useful during he Industrial Revolution. They do nothing but disrupt business and people’s lives in modern society.
If you don’t like your pay or conditions then leave your job.
@Fergus Fring: And it will be so easy to find another job ?
@James O’Donovan: maybe not as cushy as the one you have today, but with unemployment so low you should have no problem finding another job.
@Neville Bartos: Why would I leave an alleged cushy job ? Im replying to the original comment telling people to leave their jobs
About half the places I’ve worked in were unionised. From my experience, unions (in Ireland at least) are at best a screen to protect lazy people who feel they should be paid more and more for doing less and less. At worst they’re a tool for bullies who push their way into the shop steward roles and then push everyone around. They might have had a role to play in the past, but in their current guise they’re basically toxic.
@Pseud O’Nym: Did you sit and moan about your union or did you stand up and fight for your beliefs. If the union is wrong change it, as members you have that responsibility. So instead come on here and moan they are toxic but you never tried to put it right. I did and I still do in other issues.
I am not a keyboard warrior, I get out into the battle and fight the good fight.
@Pseud O’Nym: I have worked hard for forty years. It’s always been badly paid but it’s only now that we’re unionised there is some hope of pushing for better conditions.
I’ve never had anytime for unions during my working life and now that I’m retired I still have no time for them it was mandery in my time to join a union which I hated
The unions in this country are the models of the pigs in animal farm. They became the oppressors during the recession and they stopped representing their members and became members of Little Howlin’s cabinet. Sorry unions betrayed their core values and now don’t represent but lead in a direction that hurts members.
I’m right wing and free market capitalist and completely agree with this article because it’s exactly what the free market should be! Individuals grouping to increase their bargaining position.
@Judean: The Union representing Sergeant McCabe didn’t do a whole lot grouping together to protect him
@Johnny Mason:
I presume your logic is that all unions are therefore bad.
And if that’s not your point then you’re referencing an isolated incident to what end exactly?
@Judean: My reference is pretty clear I would of thought when there is a conflict of issues and in many many incidents that result in bullying or smears particular between members the Unions have been exposed to be UN supportive how you came to the logic that I claim all Unions are bad are the speak of a Bully actually
@Johnny Mason: whats your point?? Dont get you! Garda not in a Union, you know?
@Judean: But it’s not just a bargaining position… Often times staff/unions can hold a company (or city if you’re transdev’s staff union) hostage to their demands. If it was truly a free market the employer should also have the right to fire everyone who isn’t doing their job and hire people who will. Unions skew the balance unfairly into the hands of the employee.
How to increase take home pay in a country that taxes 48.5% over 35k? Hmmm….
@Cllr. Keith Redmond: remember that the salmon eating union leaders consistently negotiated keeping low paid private union employees quiet as long as their older colleagues in public sector were taken care off. As someone said, union membership was mandatory in lots of places of employment, such as supermarkets, retail and hospitality, and unions blatantly used used the numbers in these low paid to gain bargaining power for smaller, higher paid sub-unions.
@Cllr. Keith Redmond: upskill, improve, move job and challenge yourself. They are just some very simple options. 48% of a increase is better than sitting in the same job not getting 48% of your increase.
@Gulliver Foyle: The state and semi state hike was benchmarking which was brought in to equalise pay between the Private Sector and the Public Sector as the Public Sector was far behind in wages at management level. The average worker in the sector is not paid cray money either. I know I went into it from the private sector before I retired.
The I T industry seems to manage quite well without them and because of the strong Political connection Unions have It should remain a freedom of choice. Also there has always been the complaint the officials on many occasions have been to close to Company or Industry Interests
@Johnny Mason: you may have noticed that he also mentioned that London and Dublin are miles ahead in salary compared with (low cost) Belfast for financial wages. Have a guess which of these cities is more unionised that had stifled competition. The whole article is contradictory and lacking any evidence that union membership will give what the headline says – more money – than personal negotiations.
The other option is to upskill and get a better job.
@alphanautica: Not that simple, I constantly upskill but due to disability can not get another job in a different company.
@GClare: Thats because WE are disabled. I lost my job when I became disabled so I understand. We must fight on and educate that we are often better employees and harder workers than most. We just have to keep fighting the good fight
Good article, but I would say issues run deeper again. With a strong trade union movement comes a strong labour movement politically. A shop steward on a factory floor with little education but who shows themselves willing and able to fight unselfishly for his colleagues could traditionally ascend to national politics through the labour movement and fight for the labour class as a whole, addressing housing and tax issues for all. By decimating the labour movements (UK 80s, Ireland 90s) this path no longer really exists, and now we have iPhone Joan as the champion of the horrid working man. Renewing the labour movement for the modern age is essential, the alternative is a slow burning return to Dickensian times which I think most can see has already begun in earnest.
@Liam Doyle: hahahaha
In today’s world, I contend that if you had two identical businesses, one with a Unionized workforce and the other without, the latter would be far better off in terms of market competitiveness and better chance of employee progression as a result.
In an ideal world Unions are a good idea, but in reality they are corrupt, self-serving, and disruptive.
Employees should be able to informally unionize through company channels and initiatives.
Job of management – get maximum work from the worker for minimum pay. Job of union – get maximum pay for minimum work. When both are in balance we get reasonable pay for reasonable work. Both sides need to be competent for this to work – not always the case.
Yep. Just like Ryanair, whose pilots got paid 20% more than their competitors until they joined a union, now there on strike and probably going to loose 30% of workforce. Not to mention screwing up everyone’s travel plans. Yep. Unions are great.
Unfortunately while the idea of unions is great, they attract trouble makers who want to so as little as possible and expect everyone else to do the work.
Great article .
The attitudes to unions in Ireland is quite different to those in other countries .
For all those complaining about unions in the comments section , the answer is easy. Join a union . Make your voice heard democratically.
Don’t like it ? Change it?
A union is the independent collective voice for employees to address the inbuilt imbalance of power between the employer and employee.
If you’re not a union member – Look at your salary , holiday pay , sick leave entitlement , health & safety , equality etc etc
If you honestly think that the trade union movement has not played a part in raising these for you over the decades fine. Even in a ‘non unionised ‘ environment I think you’re very wrong.
If you agree it has pushed your salary etc up, then pehaps you are a free loader, unwilling to contribute – and thinking of arguments to justify your ‘ free loading ‘ ? .
Irish trade unions span across a range on the economic spectrum form the ‘ left ‘ to the centre / centre right . They’re filled with strong passionate people seeking a better workplace . I’ve never encountered one ‘ out for themself ‘ , but naturally , if you want to find fault ( and in particular don’t want to pay the monthly sub ) you will find something critical to cling to.
Hospital consultants earning 6 figure incomes , and professional footballers earning seven figures + rightly understand that a collective voice is far stronger than individually negotiating .
Unions are never perfect . But by not joining a union, you play in the hands of those who want to drive down conditions to the minimum they can get away with.
Of course there is the category of Irish people who believe that being anti union raises their ‘ social status’ . They get up too early in the morning for me, so I’m not sure where they’re coming from.
As soon as you mentioned TASC I tuned out
How to increase take home pay in a country that taxes 48.5% over 35k? Hmmm….
How to increase take home pay in a country that taxes 48.5% over 35k? Hmmm….
@Cllr. Keith Redmond:
People wonder why it’s such a mystery lol!
Good point
How does one measure ‘increases in productivity’ say in the dept of social protection. Sick days on average is 13.something, any increase in productivity is wiped away by a culture of taking sickies. Computers in most modern countries have taken away much of the need for paper documents yet the HSE still rely on paper files which in the case of Tusla small mistakes leading to a tribunal.
Union have being a dirty word since we learned of the slush fund culture of the top union leaders.
We are a secret tax haven for multinational and that plays into house prices and our cost of living. Our GDP rises as companies move billions through our banking system then onto other offshore islands, causing us to pay more to Europe for membership.
Wage rises without controlling cost of living is not sustainable. how many other countries pay bus drivers over 50,000 euro or make politician into millionaires through wages and expenses.
Its all the hidden taxes and levy’s that takeaway any disposable income for even people on 80,000 a year. we not only pay a carbon tax but also VAT. Double and treble taxation is common place. Even a 99 cone on a summers day includes 23% vat.
I have never seen a union mount a decent strike or save anything except themselves this Country is being dragged around the place by bankers who can do what ever they like big property developers going bankrupt and doing government contracts 12 months later .We have to start with getting rid of FF and FG and put in a Government that will work for everyone and not just the chosen and maybe then put in a decent Union.
I think there is most likely a strong case for unions in certain situations/industries – in particular for the likes of nurses.
However there have been so many ridiculous strikes, and that has tarnished the perception of trade union movement. The LUAS strike was a prime example – there was no simply no reasonable justification for the dispute. But they knew they could hold the public to ransom, so they did.
@voice of raisin: it was entirely justified. they wanted a pay increase and after strike they got it. justified 100pc
@voice of raisin: There was a reason for it, the company made a deal and reneged on it. Simple as that as they had done before without the union taking the ultimate action.
No thanks
Joined a union years ago. Large union rep chap, straight from union rep central casting [casual jacket, badge on jacket, reliable shoes, etc] popped in to give a lecture. That was years ago, havent seen him since.
have your say