Dear Minister O'Rourke
Mary, a chara
It's not often that we rush out to congratulate a Dublin
Government minister but your decision to intervene in this week's
Bus Eireann dispute and pull an overzealous management back from
the brink is to be commended.
You have done what neither of your predecessors managed to do,
which is to show some common sense when dealing with developing
the public transport services.
For over a year now management at CIE who are appointed by
government have deliberately locked themselves into a conflict
situation with their workers over the introduction of cost
savings plans.
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Public sector workers should no longer be scapegoats for
management failures and government inaction
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The fact that unions agreed three successive such plans since
1986 was quickly forgotten and CIE management were allowed by
their government masters to trot out the tired line about workers
needing to accept change and face up to the rigours of
competitive markets.
Bus Eireann drivers have a basic wage rate of only £181. By how
much can such a wage be cut? You have taken the first step
towards bringing sense into discussions over the future of the
state's public transports system.
However even though you have shown competence way above your
predecessors there is still much more to be done. You can create
the environment where CIE workers can negotiate fairly with
management and lay down a marker that public sector workers
should no longer be scapegoats for management failures and
government inaction. Now that would really be an achievement.
Is mise,
Neil Forde
·
Low wage dilemma
The problem of low wages and exploited workers will always be
highlighted in An Phoblacht. It is one of the fundamental
principles of socialist republicanism that ``the right of every
citizen to an adequate share of the produce of the Nation's
labour'' is fully recognised. This year's Sinn Féin discussion
document on economic development Putting People First asserts:
``Everyone should be able to gain meaningful, well-paid, long-term
employment in jobs that provide genuine security and fair
conditions.''
Armed with such principles how should you view the case of South
West Water, one of the recently privatised British water
companies. South West Water are having problems finding a new
chief executive. Nobody wants to work for the paltry £172,000 per
annum that the previous chief executive Keith Court earned.
South West don't want to make an improved offer because an
increase on £172,000 would be seen to ``pay a fat cat salary''. For
the record £172,000 breaks down to payments of over £3,300 a week
and a hourly wage for a 40 hour week of over £82.
To put this in perspective, the minimum wage commission set up by
Tony Blair is wrestling on whether a minimum hourly wage of £3.50
should be set in Britain. It just makes you wonder what a fat cat
salary really is.
·
SIPTU set standard
Following on the subject of fat cat salaries, SIPTU is to cut the
salaries paid to the union's president, vice president and
general secretary.
Current incumbents Jimmy Somers and Bill Attley will continue to
receive £75,830 annually, but future holders of the posts will
only be paid £59,812. The salaries, while high compared to that
of most workers, are low compared to what some Irish corporate
executives earn. However even at £59,812 the SIPTU top salary is
over four times the average industrial wage.
The next logical step then is for SIPTU to use the wage cuts at
the top end of its salary range to improve the lot of those at
the bottom end. SIPTU say that the cuts are part of their
Strategic Development Initiative. It remains to be seen will it
include wage equality as well as wage cuts.
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