Hunger strike begins at Green Isle

A GREEN ISLE shop steward who begins a hunger strike outside the company’s Naas plant this afternoon has vowed his protest will continue until the six-month long dispute is resolved.

Jim Wyse’s action is in support of workers who have been let go from the food company following a dispute over accessing of material on its computers.

The Technical Engineering and Electrical Union (TEEU), which has a number of members working in Green Isle, says Mr Wyse will be joined by another hunger striker each Wednesday until the company and the affected workers reach agreement.

The company and union cite two different events which have led to the current dispute.

According to the TEEU, problems first arose in November 2008 when a staff member turned on a computer and discovered an icon entitled “boardroom”. It says that when he opened it, he realised it contained detailed company information, including financial statements. The union said he did nothing with it initially, but months later shared information he found with other staff.

The TEEU said this caused disquiet among management and it then used the discovery of “images of a page three nature” to act against a number of staff members.

The company says the dispute is based on material which, it claims, was of a serious adult nature and in breach of company IT guidelines. Three staff were dismissed as a result.

The union and affected staff have tried to get themselves reinstated but to no avail. They have also sought compensation.

“For five of the last six months the company has refused to talk to us,” said Mr Wyse, who has worked for Green Isle for 13 years. “We contacted the company after Christmas to ask for talks on the basis of the Labour Court recommendations, which were in our favour. They wouldn’t meet with TEEU officials but agreed to meet us in direct talks... there were three meetings over four weeks... they said they would consider our proposals and came back two weeks later to tell us it would cost too much and to come up with something else. It was at that stage we decided they were stringing us along.”

The company said it had approached an independent mediator last week “to sponsor an initiative focused on agreeing a settlement with the workers concerned”. It would not discuss the hunger strike.