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‘SIPTU GRASSROOTS UNITE’ is to hold a protest march in the centre of Dublin today calling for the Irish Congress of Trade Unions to “arise from the dead”.
The group will march to the ICTU headquarters in Parnell Square from the Garden of Remembrance today at 2pm and will feature speeches calling for Irish unions to “help the Irish people in their fight against the continuing austerity policies of this Government”.
The SIPTU Grassroots group say that the leadership of the union have become disconnected from the wider membership and lack transparency.
The march is being organised through Facebook where Alan Lawes of the group says that they firmly believe in trade unionism but that the leadership within the labour movement have ‘abandoned their Irish members’:
When thousands marched on the streets against the property tax, both SIPTU and ICTU stayed silent. It seems once there is a Labour Government in power, SITPU and ICTU will sit on their hands and role over to all austerity measures and play dead.
United Left Allinace TD Clare Daly has appealed for people to attend the protest and to “bring a white flag if you can to symbolize ICTU’s surrender”.
Last month SIPTU members voted to accept the Haddington Road Agreement by 76 per cent to 24 per cent.
Over the past number of weeks a number other unions including the Public Service Executive Union, The Irish Medical Organisation and the Civil Public Service Union have also voted to accept the Government pay deal.
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Good enough for them…SIPTU and the rest of the bearded brethren tried to railroad Frontline workers to save their own useless skins and it backfired badly on them…a self centred organisation that this country could do well without
Good old faceless Jimmy. Hide behind a photo and jimmy. Coward.
Well Gerry, I hope you see the irony in your comment….Hugs and Cuddles, Jimmy…
Jesus i hate unions..tell me. How well paid are those running them or st higher levels throughout the organisation. How many times have they reduced the membership fee during difficult times? They are just there to protect the useless work dodgers amoungst the workforce.
Excellent
Jimmy who??? Your pic?? Keep hiding.
Eh are you being serious Gerry or does your face genuinely look like a Celtic design?
So what do you work at Ellbit??
Niall the bumble bee?? Or a robber??
Well Gerry, The irony clearly was list on you…by the way yourself and rhe bearded brethren are not revolutionaries defending the ordinary working man as you think you are….you are leeches who survive on the subsidies of the working man you claim to represent. Your ilk cozy up to whatever administration is in power to keep the gravy flowing…I have huge admiration for the Frontline workers who gave your ilk the two fingers as you tried to do side deals to save your skins behind their backs…
We could do with the organisation Jimmy, but without the present leaders.
I’m all into protests but are all the gangsters in the Dail (ie the people that will be ramping up the austerity next December) not all off on the old holidays.
They won’t be long coming back if we make enough noise… Why not protest yourself? How good would it feel to know that your protests led to the likes of howlin and shatter having to cut short their holiday to the south of France?
I think you’re under the impression they give a flying f**k with what they regard as the peasants are shouting about. I think if the protesters were to storm the Dail or some other government building and occupy it then maybe it would inconvenient them from scoffing their fine wine and caviar.
Is this the same SIPTU that donates money to the Labour Party and hasn’t called on it to withdraw from Government and stop supporting austerity? What a joke.
If the “People” elected gangsters, what does that make the people?
@William Grogan:
Q: “If the “People” elected gangsters, what does that make the people?”
A: They are either gangsters themselves or Gob*sites.
Garden of remembrance. To Parnell sq in this weather jaysus they will be b******d after that But fair play personally I would prefare a million man march strait into the halls of Leinster house particularly when the spineless leaders are there
Now that’s a protest
We have a country run by fools, protected by spin doctors and journalist looking after themselves with no regard for ordinary decent people, As the Union’s pay lip service to decent.
I shall be there with thousands more but I suppose the goverment won’t care because they are abroad in their holiday homes.
@ Denise, seeing as you’re so sure about people being abroad in their holiday homes could you please list a dozen or so just so we know you are not talking through your behind?
Well Phil Hogan has a place in Portugal Pat Rabbite is off to Italy Rory Quinn is in France and I could go on.
@ John
You put your hand out there and Denise well and truly slapped it
That’s got to hurt John. Well done Denise :-)
@ Denise, I asked if you could list say a dozen and you told us that Phil Hogan has a home and Pat Rabbitte and Ruairi Quinn were going on holidays. That’s a grand total of one holiday home and two holidays!
There are including Senators and TDs over 160 members of the Oireachtas. They have the same entitlement as every other citizen to take a holiday wherever they wish. All the better for them if they are lucky to own a holiday home.
BTW I am not a supporter of any political Party it’s just that I have an aversion to sweeping general comments which in fairness are not backed up by facts.
@John, if you have an aversion to sweeping general comments which are not backed up by facts you really are in the wrong place, and I’d say you must suffer enormous anguish when you read newspapers or watch the news.
And me and you are left here Denise struggling under their austerity.policies. Its prosperity for them and austerity for the rest of us.
unions were relevant at one stage for the worKer, but are now more relevant for the gov.
@duisigheire:
“unions were relevant at one stage for the worKer, but are now more relevant for the gov.”
Correct, just like the EU. It’s no longer fit for purpose either.
Bloody unions have nothing better to be doing. Unions should be abolished, no need for them.
Dear oh dear Alan. This is not the unions marching in this instance but your comments show how out of touch you are. Trade unions are the reason why workers enjoy much better working conditions. You think those lovely employers would have given a 39 hour week, paid holidays, pension, overtime etc. you think lovely governments would have given legal rights if it were not for trade unions? Alan you are either an employer or one of those workers that piggy back on the campaigning of others with guts. And the weekend you are enjoying was brought to you by unions. Enjoy parasite.
Yes agreed fossil, trade unions were needed in the industrial era when working conditions were no better than they are currently in some parts of India. We will never go back to conditions like that with or without trade unions. This is 2013 I have you known
Well Alan your Jurassic remarks prove how out of touch you are. So you think we could never go back? Well just ask the middle class in the US. Just see how far they have gone back. Look what has happened since the crisis. Look at the richest and most equal countries in the world like the Nordic countries and of course they have high union density and collective bargaining rights. Now Alan you may want to keep your head in the sand and by the way if unions disappear so soon will your good levels of pay and conditions. Selfishness and greed is alive and well in Ireland and Alan you are in the centre of it.
Well said Gerry. Go easy on Alan though because its not really his fault. Most of the younger generations have through an avalanche of propaganda in the mainstream media come to believe in the neo liberal dogma that the free market is the solution to all our problems. God help them and us all if that vision comes to pass.
Can you raise a family on €8.65 and hour Alan, I am glad if you earn more, but that is where wages are heading here and employer groups want this rate to go even lower. Unions that represent their members are a good thing. The ones we have represent a Government Party “Labour” NOT THEIR OWN MEMBERS..
Good woman Claire. Her friend in the Dáil doesn’t like trade unions either. He apart from dodging tax also did not pay pension contributions for his workers. I’m sure Claire won’t have a problem with that. Bet they won’t march outside IBEC offices.
So is this the 24% of SIPTU who voted No marching against their own democratic vote?
No Padriag this is the 75% of ICTU members who voted No to Croke Park 2, and then the Labour Party supporters within ICTU and SIPTU decided to help the Government change their mind by introducing the Fempi legislation threatening workers if they didnt sigh yes to Haddington Road they would get worse. Nothing democratic about using threats on your own members.
Clare Daly calls on people to come out…..I wonder if her tax dodging buddy who also burdened the tax payer with his defaulting bank loans will also attend ? Makes you want to puke!
Gerard, your comments are insulting to the greater number of employers, take a look at the history of such companies as Cadburys, history of the town of Saltaire in West Yorkshire built by the largest employer in the area, Guiness here – schools, theatre, medical facilities,public baths, St Stephens Green. All long before trade unions
And all exploited their workers before unions. And would still do today if they had a chance.
Well said Gerry, I really believe some people in Ireland need to be educated in the reasons we needed and still badly need trade unions in Ireland.
Gerry, how do you explain the fact that the majority of workers in Ireland today don’t feel they’re exploited by their employers or need to join a union?
Unions are just a way for a bunch of people to create a monopoly to over charge those that have to pay for their services. If companies did it, they would be fined for anti-competitive behavior or price fixing.
Gerry,
There were no unions when those companies mentioned started. Before commenting on history of anything read a bit of history. Unions were needed initially and the German model is pretty successful, even if you and your mates don’ t agree. The british, Irish, American model and similar which is oppose employers all the way is not. Do you know the definition of an employer, probably not. Without employers there would be no need for unions because there would be very few if any jobs, other than state employment. Take a look east 20+ years ago.
Shower of wasters
Martin if you are speaking about the unions I agree. They have really misrepresented their members over the last 5 years.
There’s no point having Unions if they don’t do anything (apart from taking your money)
Not the union that I am a member of (TEEU) – they changed their policy on the need for subscriptions to remain in benefit membership for members who had lost their jobs – plus they have NEVER let their members down.
Together we are stronger.
Ireland is quite the exception in western europe where workers have well protected safeguards and union rights. In ireland this is limited to civil service only. The private sector have no rights and workers are afraid to join a union or their careers will be halted or sacked. The government can count on around 800k votes to start with but to achieve that they must keep public sector workers/unions satisfied as well as securing sufficient grant aid. There is a large upper middle class in ireland in the public sector who make great money and unlike private sector workers have really good pensions. They will say we are just jealous/envious which is true. The govt knows they will lose many votes esp. With 400k on the dole. so now more than ever the large public sector is their key demographic (esp. Middle/upper middle class) to try and shore up votes. Those doing well in the public sector will not support en masse auterity/protest groups unless their personal financial interest is directly affected (recent/effective protests feb-mar ’13).
Typo; grant aid for agri sector.
Much of the private sector is organised, there is nothing to stop the rest organising but the fear of being treated badly by an employer for doing so. Workers can only be organised when they stick together, splitters cause weakness within unions and organised employments, The employers will fully support the ‘grass roots’
More marchers disrupting traffic in my city. They are not welcome in my area. All marches should be banned. Marching in this the modern world looks ridiculous.
Pauric O Laighin, you are a very ignorant man. One of the first things that the Nazis did when they assumed power was to outlaw trade unions.
POL, why were they called The Nationalist Socialist German Workers’ Party then? When I was 18 I was forced to join a union against my wishes. Isn’t that fascism?
For the same reason that we have a department of “social protection” and a “health service”.
It’s all b*ll*cks propaganda to deceive the public and get elected.
Once elected, they sh1t on you from a height.
No it is not fascism. So what do you call it when your employer asks for your democratic mandate for the pay you get and the hours you work? Oh wait
Sorry, Gerry not Gerard
Unions are just an anachronism now. A waste of their members’ money. They should just fold up shop and go away.
Feel free not to join William, but if unions really were an anachronism IBEC and FG would hardly be having kittens about Irish workers being given the right to be represented by one.
Unfortunately Paul, “feel free to join them” didn’t apply to me. When I was 18 I turned up to work on the night shift for the summer in East Cork Foods and was told I had to join the union or no job. Very little freedom there. I didn’t know, being only 18, that the Irish constitution has a clause concerning freedom of association. Trade Unions are the antithesis of individual freedom. They’re just gangs of bully boys.
This from the union that has repeatedly caved in to government demands whenever the country has faced a turning point e.g. Croke park agreement !!! Situ behaves like a maverick one minute and a government department next.
SIPTU Grassroots is not Jack O’Connor. Hence the name.
Wages have fallen 13% since the crisis began meanwhile the wealthiest have increased their wealth by 10%. Yeah unions are an anachronism. The rank and file need to organise and take back our unions
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