Electricians’ strike - Government must take the initiative

The electricians’ strike has such enormous ramifications that it is important that people should know exactly what is at issue. Most important of all, the two sides should know and should be clear on the issue, because of its implications for the whole country.

Are the workers of the Technical Engineering and Electrical Union (TEEU) striking for an 11% increase in wages, which they were due to receive under agreements concluded in better economic times, or are they striking to prevent employers implementing a 10% cut in wages?

We need clarity on the issue. As a country we all have to accept that we have been living beyond our means. But everybody should be treated fairly. All will have to endure economic pain to get things back on track, but everybody has to be seen to be bearing a fair share of the burden.

There is no doubt that too many in society feel that the 80% people, who have just 20% of the wealth, are being asked to carry a disproportionate share of the overall burden.

Arguments in relation to the strike are becoming quite vitriolic. Tom Parlon, director of the Construction Industry Federation, essentially accused the leadership of the TEEU of being “lunatics”. This kind of emotive language never helps matters.

The Government should give a lead by taking an initiative to settle the dispute. There seems to be merit on both sides of the argument, and hence somebody on the outside should try to broker an agreement, especially when we are facing the most serious economic crisis in the country’s history.

It is not enough to say we all have to suffer pain; there is a need to demonstrate that everybody is playing their part. The political system has a role to play in ensuring that both sides seek a resolution of the dispute.

People have been talking about green shoots in the economy, but this strike might be the weed that could suffocate the shoots before those get the chance to develop. This is why the Government should take the initiative. Otherwise the dispute has the potential to polarise society and destroy the social partnership, which has served Irish society so well in recent decades.

The dispute should not be allowed to turn into a major confrontation between workers and employers. Society needs to know where we are going and how we are going to get there. This is where the political leadership should be taking the initiative. Politicians need to explain exactly where we are going.

They should be advocating responsible action. That is vastly more important that the nitty-gritty of this dispute.

The dispute is really a symptom of a bigger problem, and the bigger problem needs to be dealt with through constructive leadership.