Labour Court to rule on construction pay rise

THE Labour Court will this morning be asked to consider whether workers in the construction industry should receive a 6% pay increase over the next 21 months — or be hit with a 10% pay cut.

The Construction Industry Federation (CIF) and the construction committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions will attend the court to argue how the industry’s registered employment agreement should be altered. The unions argue construction employers have enjoyed 10 years of boom profits and should pay the 6% recommended by the national wage deal.

They say the well-publicised closure of construction firms has not been as all-encompassing as claimed and argue it is misleading of employers to say a pay increase will put more companies out of business. In their view, a collapse of confidence in the market and a choking off of financial capital have, above all, lead to the downturn.