Hopes rise that Bus Éireann strike can be resolved

As passengers this morning face into a 20th day without Bus Éireann services, there is a possibility the Labour Court could produce a recommendation which will stop the strike spreading to day 21.

The sides will reconvene at the Labour Court at 10.30am today to see if it can find the formula for resolution which eluded the Workplace Relations Commission.

Early yesterday morning, after another round-the-clock session in the WRC, unions and management emerged to say the talks had broken down and the dispute was being moved to the Labour Court for a non-binding recommendation.

The break-up of the WRC talks came with yet more rancour not just between unions and management but also directed towards the Government and National Transport Authority.

Unions pointed out that they had offered €18 million in savings — significantly more than had been originally sought by the company — as well as an 11% increase in efficiency. The company conceded that progress had been made and agreement reached to eliminate many work practice inefficiencies.

However, it said an offer made by the company “that would help to deliver financial viability” was rejected by driver representatives.

It is believed the company was looking at a consolidated wage deal, incorporating a number of non-core payments into core pay, which was the equivalent of €19.20 per hour. The unions, however, had been looking for a wage in the region of €22-€23.

Now that the process has moved onto the Labour Court, it is likely any recommendation will include a wage figure. It is possible that it would fall somewhere between the two positions of the sides and a figure of €21 may well be accepted.

The sides were in the Labour Court for three hours yesterday afternoon, before the court adjourned the session to allow it time to assess the positions of the sides before bringing them back in at 10.30am this morning.

It is likely that the court will make a recommendation by this evening or tomorrow.

Unions have signalled that, as soon as a recommendation emerges which can be put to a ballot, pickets will be lifted by the 1,900 staff members currently on strike and bus services will be able to resume while the workers vote on the proposals.

Earlier, unions had directed criticism towards the Department of Transport over, what National Bus and Rail Union general secretary Dermot O’Leary called, the Government’s “restrictive role” in the talks process. Referencing the Department and the National Transport Authority, he said other agencies restricting the ability of Bus Éireann to actually reach agreement with the unions.

Siptu said it appeared that management was controlled “by consultants and others outside the process who are content to see 2,600 good jobs lost in order to advance the privatisation of public transport”.

However, the Government denied it was doing anything more than facilitating the WRC and Labour Court, while the NTA told RTÉ none of its officials had been near the WRC talks, though it said its chief executive Anne Graham had met Bus Éireann chief executive Ray Hernan on Sunday to be briefed on the situation.