CIF wants pay cuts of up to 30%

THE Construction Industry Federation has referred a claim for a 20%-30% cut in labour costs to the Labour Court after talks with unions failed to yield agreement.

A CIF spokesman said that as well as seeking a 20% reduction in wage rates across the board, it is also looking for other labour cost savings on issues contained within the industry’s Registered Employment Agreement (REA) for the industry, such as travel times and rates for overtime.

“The REA, as people know, guarantees rates of pay far in excess of those applying in most other sectors of the economy,” a CIF spokesman said.