Paul Murphy confronts Iceland workers' pay, defends Ireland's pay model
Paul Murphy addressed the situation facing workers at Iceland stores in Ireland, criticising the company's handling of store sales, unpaid wages and deteriorating working conditions and calling for legal protections and guarantees. He contrasted strike action in Britain and Northern Ireland with Ireland's central pay mechanism, arguing the Irish model has generally reduced strikes and delivered pay increases above inflation over the past five to ten years.
Iceland workers' complaints
The speaker said the company sold stores in the south while retaining stores in the north, with staff in the south told nothing about transfers and now working for a franchisee of Iceland. He reported workers left weeks without pay, citing one worker owed 110 hours including holiday pay, and described worsened conditions including electricity turned off and no air conditioning in very warm stores.
Transfer of undertakings and union engagement
He argued that affected staff should be covered by transfer of undertakings legislation and guaranteed the same terms and conditions, but that guarantee has not been given. He said the company has not engaged with the independent workers' union representing the employees.
Strike ballots and parliamentary exchange
The workers have balloted for strike action, and the speaker asked the Taoiseach whether the company would guarantee terms and engage with union representatives. He said that, if he understood correctly that encouragement was given for workers in Ireland to strike like those in Britain and Northern Ireland, he would encourage that, while also noting the disruption those strikes are causing elsewhere.
Comparison with UK pay and Ireland's central pay model
He highlighted differences between the UK and Ireland, saying pay in the UK is lower and that, broadly over the past five to ten years, pay in Ireland increased faster than inflation. He defended Ireland's central pay mechanism for negotiating public sector pay in the round as a model that avoids strike action by and large and delivers pay increases that tend to exceed inflation.
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The fate of Iceland workers who have very different conditions now on this island. The company has sold the stores in the south while retaining the stores in the north. Staff in the south were told nothing about the fact that their employment was being transferred and they are now working for a franchisee of Iceland. Clearly the workers should be covered by the transfer of undertakings legislation, they should be guaranteed the same terms and conditions, but that has not happened. Workers have been left weeks without being paid, one worker owed 110 hours including holiday pay with children to feed, conditions have dramatically worsened with electricity turned off in stores, workers left without air conditioning in extremely warm stores and the company has not engaged with their union, the independent workers' union. Workers have balloted for strike action. Taoiseach, do you agree that the workers' terms and conditions must be guaranteed, the company should give that guarantee and the company should engage with workers and their union representatives? If I understood him correctly, he was encouraging workers in Ireland to go on strike like they are in Britain and Northern Ireland. I would encourage that. It is causing huge disruption and huge inconvenience to people in Northern Ireland and in Britain and I am glad that we are not having the kind of strikes that they are having in the UK at the moment. There are fundamental differences. Pay in the UK is lower than it is in Ireland and by and large over the past five to ten years pay in Ireland increased faster than inflation and that was not the case in the same way in the UK. So that is a pretty fundamental difference. The other is that we have a central pay mechanism. We negotiate a deal with public sector workers in the round and in one go and I think that is a much better model again than they have in the UK where it is done by a pay review body. So I think the approach that we have which avoids strike action by and large and means by and large that workers get pay increases that exceed inflation, not true every year but broadly true over the past five to ten years, that that is a good model and one that we should keep. Thank you. Thank you.
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