Public servants working from home on Wednesday will be seen as 'crossing picket lines', unions say

Irish Federation of University Teachers members from Trinity College Dublin prepare for industrial action. Picture: Tommy Clancy.

Trade unions have said there is “no loophole” to industrial action in response to a suggestion public servants could work from home during Wednesday’s strike.

Fórsa said a union member logging into their work laptop from home to answer an email or take a phone call would be seen as crossing the picket lines.

Union representatives also suggested a guest lecturer who hosted an online class as part of a module would be considered to be breaking the picket.

“Tomorrow is a strike day regardless of workplace location,” a Fórsa spokesperson said.

Unions noted hybrid working was much more of a feature than the last public sector strike in 2009, and there was a “generational gap” on strike protocol.

Cathie Shiels, a Siptu trade union organiser in the education sector, said she had heard education staff had been asked to make up for lost work, deliver classes online, or even put more junior members of staff under pressure to deliver on behalf of striking staff.

She featured in a social media video by Siptu to remind workers that working from home would constitute breaking the picket.

“Part of the reason we put out the video was to say there are no loopholes when it comes to industrial action,” she said.

“We were getting a few queries in, like ‘I am told I can work from home on Wednesday’ — we just wanted to make sure there was no doubt in people’s minds.” 

In correspondence seen by the Irish Examiner, UCD said module coordinators "may decide to inform students directly that specific classes will be delivered online" and as staff on-campus would be reduced, the university was "encouraging employees to work from home where possible".

Asked about a scenario where a guest lecturer who was delivering a class as part of a module, but was not a unionised member of staff, unions said they would view this as breaking the picket.

A spokesperson for the Irish Federation of University Teachers, which represents thousands of lecturers, librarians, tutors, and teaching fellows, said they would also consider it as crossing the picket.

“I would consider it a modern, electronic means of crossing a picket and someone would have a job to convince me otherwise,” a spokesperson said.

“At a very basic level, the answer is yes,” Ms Shiels said, though she added such workers may have less legal protection than balloted union members.

“Any undermining of a picket is to undermine the strike.” 

UCD has been contacted for comment.