Electricians return after suspending strike action

STRIKING electricians were due back to work this morning but with a warning that they were only suspending, not ending, their strike action.

Their next move will be determined by the response of employers to the weekend’s Labour Court recommendation that they give in to demands for a 4.9% pay rise and remain open to negotiations for 6% more.

The two recognised employers’ bodies, the Association of Electrical Contractors Ireland (AECI) and the Electrical Contractors Association (ECA), are expected to meet in the coming days to consider the recommendation. The executive of the Technical Engineering and Electrical Union (TEEU), which represents the electricians, will meet on Thursday to consider their responses. Some 10,000 TEEU members had been on strike since last Monday, virtually shutting down all major construction sites, prompting an emergency Dáil debate followed by a Government order to the Labour Relations Commission to intervene.

TEEU general secretary designate Eamon Devoy said there was a “lot of relief” the industrial disputes body had recognised the workers’ rights to the 4.9% increase. But he said the move was in “good faith”, pending the employers’ response.

Even if the ECA and AECI agree to the recommendation – which is at odds with their claim they need to implement a 10% pay cut – the deal could come unstuck through the opposition of the breakaway National Electrical Contractors Ireland (NECI), which said it was going to ballot its members on the proposed deal.

The NECI is not recognised for negotiations, but has warned it cannot pay any increases and said it may mount a legal challenge if the other bodies’ attempt to agree a deal it says would force its members – mainly small and medium contractors – out of business.

Fine Gael enterprise spokesman Leo Varadkar urged all parties involved to continue their efforts towards agreement. “The suspension of the strike creates an opportunity. It creates a small breathing space in which all three employers’ groups and the TEEU can negotiate a new registered employment agreement which reflects changed economic times,” he said.