Unite the union condemns attacks on Translink staff working on Glider service

Posted on May 5, 2023 by unitetheunion

May 5th: The Unite the union Metro Branch Committee has condemned recent attacks on Translink staff members working on the Glider service in Belfast. In four different anti-social behaviour incidents over recent days, members of staff opening the Glider service have been subject to assault and attacks.

Unite the union, the largest public transport union in the UK and Ireland, expressed its commitment to working with Translink management, the relevant authorities and all stakeholders in tackling antisocial behaviour and preventing further attacks on staff members.

The General Secretary of Unite the union, Sharon Graham, condemned the attacks:

“The safety and security of public transport staff is of the utmost importance. It is unacceptable for any worker to be subjected to abusive or violent behaviour in the course of their employment.

“Unite the union stands in solidarity with Translink staff and appreciate their commitment to ensuring safe and reliable transportation for all people. Violence and abuse towards staff members is intolerable and our union will not allow this to continue.”

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New Unite research reveals €76 drop in real weekly wages over past two years as workers face cost-of-living catastrophe 

Posted on May 4, 2023 by unitetheunion

New Unite bulletin launched to arm activists with facts to fight for a better deal.

On Dublin visit, Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham pledges union fightback.

May 4th: A new series of Unite research briefs – Work Voice Pay Ireland – will launch tomorrow, 4th May, to coincide with a visit by Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham to Ireland. 

The latest research, which is available for download here, shows that the real median wage in Ireland has fallen by €76 since the first quarter of 2021, from €976 per week to €900 per week. Workers have seen an average 4.2% annual drop in real pay in the last year.

The union research has confirmed that in the last year energy prices have risen by eye-watering amounts. Solid fuels (such as coal) have risen by nearly a third, electricity by nearly two-thirds. Compared with prices a year ago gas prices are now 86% higher. 

These figures or similar estimates are not new, but the new Work Voice Pay Ireland means activists have accurate statistics at their fingertips when determining pay claims and related issues.

It is anticipated that a number of energy companies in Ireland will record bonanza profits in 2023, after revenues rose by billions of euros. Unite believes that political promises of windfall tax legislation in Ireland need to be made real – that could mean that billions could be diverted to workers’ households in Ireland that are struggling desperately to make ends meet.

Speaking before meeting with Unite shop stewards in Dublin, Sharon Graham said:

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Strike by MM Bangor workers for inflation-busting pay increase is set to shutdown at site

Posted on May 3, 2023 by Unite the union NI

Pickets to be established outside manufacturer of agricultural sacks from 6am tomorrow [Thursday May 4th]

Strike follows ballot of Unite the union members which returned 91% for strike action on 100% turnout

Production at MM Bangor is set to be brought to a standstill tomorrow as workers commence strike action at the site. The company, which is owned by Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG group, is the only manufacturer of agricultural sacks used by the likes of Lakeland Dairies and Dairygold on the island of Ireland.

The MM Bangor workforce are highly skilled packaging operatives but receive little above the bare legal minimum wage. Workers are seeking an inflation-proofed increase bringing them above the real Living Wage – which reflects the real cost of living pressures on workers.

Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham expressed her support for the workforce.

“MM Bangor is a very successful company experiencing a significant increase in both sales and profits post-pandemic. In 2021 the company reported an operating profit of £624k on sales of £10 million. The new owner Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG is one of the biggest agricultural suppliers globally with sales up more than 50% in 2022 to Eur 4.6 billion and an operating profit for the year of Eur 467 million.

“These companies can well afford to pay a living wage to the workers who contribute to their success. The workers at MM Bangor will have the full backing of Unite in their fight to win a cost of living increase and a living wage.”

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May Day: new Irish Secretary of Unite warns employers must pay for industrial peace

Posted on April 30, 2023 by unitetheunion

Susan Fitzgerald says strong unions best defence against wage-squeezing

“The more strike-ready workers are, the more talk-ready employers are”

April 30th: Speaking ahead of the annual May Day rally organised by the Dublin Council of Trade Unions, Unite’s new Regional Secretary for Ireland, Susan Fitzgerald, today (Sunday) warned employers that union members are prepared to take industrial action to secure cost-of-living pay increases.

“We celebrate International Workers’ Day at a time when working people are fighting back against an unprecedented cost-of-living crisis. 

“In 2022, inflation rose by 8% while wages rose by just 3.4% on average, leaving workers to absorb a real pay cut of over 4.5%.

“At the same time, profit margins accounted for over 60% of prices in the domestically-owned sector – the businesses where people work and where they spend their money. 

“Multinational profits are also soaring.  In the first three months of this year alone, the State took in €3.2 billion in corporation tax receipts, a staggering €1.3 billion, or 71%, increase over the same period last year. 

“The profiteering crisis is costing workers on the double, in terms of higher prices and suppressed wages.

“The only bulwark workers have against wage-squeezing is strong collective workplace organisation.

“Where possible, cost-of-living pay increases will be secured through negotiation – but Unite members will not shy away from taking strike action where necessary.

“Experience has taught us that the more strike-ready workers are, the more talk-ready employers are”, Susan Fitzgerald concluded.

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New Unite Regional Secretary: workers refuse to just survive but will fightback and win through their trade unions

Posted on April 29, 2023 by Unite the union NI
Susan Fitzgerald, Unite Regional Secretary

Susan Fitzgerald calls on the trade union movement to draw the lessons from workers’ struggle and hit back hard at government

Punishing budget cuts will devastate public services in Northern Ireland and are an attempt to make working-class people pay for the latest capitalist crisis

Speaking ahead of the annual May Day rally organised by the Belfast Trades Union Council, Unite’s new Regional Secretary for Ireland, Susan Fitzgerald, today (Saturday) called for the whole trade union movement to hit back hard at government after they announced brutal austerity cuts to public services in Northern Ireland.

“Over the last year and across the economy as a whole, most especially among those in workplaces without a recognised trade union, pay has failed to keep pace with surging prices during the worst cost of living crisis in generations. The result has been mounting poverty, an explosion of food banks and a dramatic rise in homelessness.

“But not content with the suffering caused to workers and the most vulnerable by this crisis, the Government now seek to impose a brutal austerity budget to devastate public services in Northern Ireland. They want to double-down on working people and make us pay for this crisis. Swinging real-terms budget cuts will undermine public services which are vital to us all – and which offer a lifeline to the sick and most vulnerable.

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