UNIONS ARE HAILING a win for workers after an agreement was reached with Roscommon County Council that will see flexi-time and flexi-leave available to staff.

This comes on the back of industrial action from workers from the Fórsa trade union last month, which was supported by Siptu members at the council this week for a fourth one-day stoppage.

Fórsa staff have already carried out previous one-day strikes in a dispute over the refusal of management to allow staff work up extra hours that would allow them accumulate up to 13 days leave per year.

Council management has argued that there was no business requirement for the overtime in many cases and the system had to be managed.

The agreement was reached at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) yesterday, and will flexi periods piloted for a two-month trial, beginning on 16 July.

It will be available to all workers up to grade 7, senior executive engineer, and all analogous grades.

The WRC said that the pilot will operate on accepted principles that management would have to be satisfied that there is sufficient, productive work to enable the generation of flexi time.

Maurice Hearne, industrial organiser for Siptu/Lapo, said in a statement: “This is a significant turning point in this long-running dispute.

We welcome the opportunity for Roscommon County Council workers to be able to avail of family-friendly work policies on an equal footing with their colleagues in other local authorities across the country.

The WRC said the dispute was still under its auspices and would hold a meeting with both parties again on 8 August.