Luas strike to go ahead next month after talks collapse

Talks to avert next month’s Luas strike have ended without a resolution at the Workplace Relations Commission.

Unions and management spent three hours locked in negotiations trying to find an end to the pay row at the company.

Both sides expressed disappointment at the failure to reach agreement following discussions at the Workplace Relations Commission between union representatives and the management of Transdev, the Luas light rail network operator.

The talks were convened Friday with the aim of finding a resolution to a dispute concerning workers’ terms and conditions of employment which has resulted in Luas staff voting to conduct two 48-hour work stoppages during February.

Workers are looking for a pay increase of up to 53%, bringing drivers in line with their counterparts at Irish Rail.

Up to 90,000 passengers would be affected daily by any work stoppage. Luas management said last week that staff were seeking pay increases of 8.5% to 53%. It said this would cost the company €30m. At a meeting with the union earlier this week Nigel Stevens, chief executive for UK and Ireland of the Luas operator, said he believed the existing pay, terms and conditions of employees were generous.

“This morning, we talked about the expectation that Siptu would make a substantial reduction in their claim. That hasn’t happened,” said Transdev managing director, Gerry Madden, said after the talks broke down.

Siptu negotiator Willie Noone confirmed that the strikes are now to go ahead. “We’ve made no progress whatsoever,” he said.

“In actual fact, we believe we’ve made a retrograde step because what was on the table from the company previously was actually withdrawn this morning so to us and to our members it shows that the company were not in the frame of mind of trying to resolve this.”

Siptu organiser John Murphy said his members were very disappointed at the approach of management to the talks.

“The company failed to show any initiative in the effort to find an agreed resolution to the dispute,” he said.

“Management representatives merely reiterated a previously stated position that our members cannot expect to receive pay rises over the next five years and that any rise that might be granted would be limited to an increase in the Consumer Price Index.”

He added: “What made this approach very disappointing is that it contradicts the stated position of management last Monday. At a meeting between management and union representatives the company said it would consider pay rises for workers above the Consumer Price Index rate.”