Strike by Luas drivers looms

The prospect of an all-out strike by Luas drivers seemed increasingly inevitable last night following a breakdown in talks designed to end a dispute over pay.

Siptu, which represents the workers, said they will meet over the next few days to consider a number of options, including a ballot for all-out strike.

Workers have already given notice of their intention to strike on St Patrick’s Day, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday, three of the busiest days in the capital with hundreds of thousands of overseas visitors expected for celebrations to mark the centenary of the Rising.

Siptu spokesperson Eoin Reidy said last night that Luas operator Transdev had only been prepared to speak to two of the four grades they represent, despite the staff significantly scaling back their pay claim.

They included 48 Revenue Protection Officers and Supervisors (RPO/RPS). However the company was not interested in talking to 186 other workers, the bulk of them drivers.

“We found the position taken by the company to be bizarre and unprecedented,” said Mr Reidy. “The grades that modified their claims the most are the ones the company won’t talk to.”

Sources at the talks indicated the union had almost halved its claim for a pay increase of 53% for drivers.

It is understood the unions were seeking 6% a year for five years, with some of that backdated to 2014.

However, that still lies far from the range of 1-3% with productivity which Transdev has put on the table.

In a statement last night, Transdev said the revised claim put forward by RPO/RPS “while still significantly beyond the company position does provide a basis for further discussions”. These groups were due back at the Workplace Relations Commission on Friday.

However, the “bottom line” positions put forward by the 186 drivers and traffic supervisors “do not provide any realistic basis for negotiations”, the company said.

Transdev said it was asking Siptu to convene a meeting to review the mandate for industrial action “and to establish whether the positions being put forward by the internal representatives reflects the views of the majority of their members”.

Meanwhile, the National Bus and Rail Union has reiterated that its bus driver members will be seeking increases on a par with whatever Luas drivers get from this round of negotiations.

The union, which represents drivers at Dublin Bus, has claimed agreement has been reached with management which will see an end to the outright ban on drivers having transistor radios in their cabs.