Unite the Union, Ireland Region

National Ambulance Service: Unite members vote overwhelmingly for action

Posted on April 10, 2026 by unitetheunion

Union slams six-year wait for implementation of review recommendations

Management must stop foot-dragging on outstanding issues

Trade union Unite, which represents members working for the National Ambulance Service (NAS), said today (Friday) that members have voted overwhelmingly to take industrial action, up to and including strike action, due to management’s ongoing failure to implement the 2020 ‘Roles and Responsibilities Review’.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “It is scandalous that frontline healthcare workers who save lives every day should be waiting six years for their skills and expertise to be recognised. Our members have been left with no option but to take action, and they have Unite’s full support as they fight for decent treatment”.

The qualifications, clinical responsibilities and operational duties of ambulance personnel have expanded significantly in recent years. Despite the fact that the ‘Roles and Responsibilities Review’ recommended enhanced pay scales to reflect the growing professionalisation of the service, those recommendations have not been implemented. In addition, a five per cent increase recommended under the Benchmarking II process has not been delivered.

Unite regional officer Eoin Drummey said: “Ambulance staff have waited long enough for recognition and respect. If management wants to avoid industrial action, they need to stop dragging their feet and engage meaningfully with unions to resolve all outstanding issues”.

Posted in Press Releases, Republic of Ireland news | Tagged ambulance service, Eoin Drummey, health, industrial action, Sharon Graham, Unite ROI | Leave a comment

Stormont must deliver on protections for women and girls

Posted on March 30, 2026 by Unite the union NI

More help and support for victims and survivors of domestic abuse and coercive control are urgently needed in Northern Ireland, according to leading trade union Unite

Unite has challenged the Northern Ireland Executive to make real its Programme for Government priority of ending violence against women and girls. This includes Safe Leave (paid annual leave to allow access to accommodation, healthcare or the legal system) and locally-accessible emergency accommodation.

Northern Ireland is the most dangerous place in Western Europe to be a woman but Stormont has yet to deliver actions to protect women who are living with threat or coercive control.

The union highlighted the two-year delay on the Stormont commitment for ‘Safe Leave’ for female workers experiencing violence and are unable to attend work. There is also a huge shortfall of local emergency accommodation, in particular for those with dependents – making it more difficult for victims and survivors of domestic abuse to leave dangerous situations.

Sharon Graham, general secretary of Unite, said: “Northern Ireland is the most dangerous place in western Europe to be a woman or a girl. The recent murders of women in the region shows that things are not improving but getting worse. This is a devolved matter where Stormont has the needed powers, the executive cannot continue to fail to act and must protect victims and survivors.” Continue reading →

Posted in Equalities, Northern Ireland news, Press Releases | Tagged Collette O'Hagan, domestic violence, emergency accommodation, safe leave, Sharon Graham | Leave a comment

Unite survey highlights cost-of-living crisis facing public sector workers

Posted on March 30, 2026 by unitetheunion

Shock new figures must frame talks on new agreement

Outstanding local bargaining increases must be paid now

As trade unions prepare for talks on a successor to the Public Service Agreement, due to expire at the end of June, trade union Unite today (Monday 30 March) released the results of a new survey of Unite members in the public sector.

Over 800 members responded to the survey carried out between February 16th and 9th March. Unite represents members in a diverse range of workplaces, including local authorities, the health sector, higher education and public bodies such as Enterprise Ireland.

The survey found that:

Almost all respondents stated that their household costs had increased over the past year, with the overwhelming majority citing increases of between 15 and 20 per cent
80 per cent had to cut back on essential spending such as food or energy over the past year
Over a quarter (26 per cent) had fallen behind on payments such as rent, mortgage, bills or loans over the past year
83 per cent had to use savings to meet their household costs over the year
33 per cent had to borrow to meet their household costs over the year

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Posted in Press Releases, Republic of Ireland news | Tagged industrial relations, public sector, Sharon Graham, Tom Fitzgerald, Unite ROI | Leave a comment

Jones Engineering in Belgium: MEPs support Unite campaign against union-busting

Posted on March 26, 2026 by unitetheunion

Unions and parliamentarians raise ‘social dumping’ concerns

Jones warned not to export shoddy labour practices

Belgian trade unionists and MEPs joined Unite this week in Charleroi to send a clear message to Irish company Jones Engineering: Union-busting will not be tolerated. As part of the General Labour Federation of Belgium – FGTB’s day of action against social dumping, a protest was held at the Google site in Farciennes, just east of Charleroi, where Jones Engineering is a sub-contractor.

In addition to Unite representatives, speakers included MEPs Estelle Ceulemans and Johan Danielsson from the European Parliament Committee on Employment and Social Affairs as well as FGTB National Secretary Arnaud Lévêque.

Unite has been in dispute with Jones since 2023, when union members took industrial action in pursuit of a claim for ‘travel time’ restoration. Instead of engaging with Unite to resolve the issues in dispute, Jones Engineering pursued the union and – in an unprecedented move – individual named shop stewards through the courts.

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Posted in Press Releases, Republic of Ireland news | Tagged construction, James McCabe, Sharon Graham, union busting, Unite ROI | Leave a comment

Northern Ireland pubs could run dry in Drinks Inc pay dispute

Posted on March 13, 2026 by Unite the union NI

Strike at Northern Ireland’s largest drinks distributor will halt all deliveries to bars, restaurants and off licenses

Unite is opening a strike ballot of its members working in for Drinks Inc (Musgrave Distribution Ltd).

The strike ballot opens Tuesday, 17 March and closes Tuesday, 31 March with industrial action possible by mid-April.

The pay dispute has erupted over the interpretation of a three-year pay deal which included an inflation escalator clause for the third year [2026]. Unite highlights that cumulative inflation has risen above the threshold which means that the pay deal for the third year has to be revisited. Management is disputing this.

Sharon Graham, Unite general secretary, said “The refusal of Drinks Inc to fulfil its commitment under the pay deal is completely unacceptable. This is a company that can clearly pay our members fairly but is choosing not to, in order to boost its own profits.”

Continue reading →