CIT staff escalate industrial action

Hundreds of academic and research staff at Cork Institute of Technology (CIT) are using the post to communicate with management as part of a major escalation of their industrial action against the controversial proposed merger of CIT and IT Tralee.

TUI members at CIT triggered the latest work-to-rule action on Monday in the second phase of their three-phase industrial action which began last year. TUI branch officer, Gillian Quinlan, said it will cause major disruption to the day-to-day running of the college. The branch’s 608 members, spread across CIT’s constituent colleges, are now restricted to using email only between 9am and 5pm, reverting to hard-copy “snail mail” outside of those hours. A raft of other work-to-rule measures could also result in disruption to the examination preparation process which begins in February, the TUI warned.

“The industrial action is open-ended until such time as meaningful consultation takes place. But so far, there is no sign of that taking place,” Ms Quinlan said.