Collective Bargaining

Congress deplores Ireland's continuing breach of International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions, namely: ILO Convention 98, Article 1 - protecting workers from acts of anti union discrimination. ILO Convention 98, Article 2 - protecting workers' organisations from acts of interference by employers; and Convention 98, Article 4- promoting the principle of voluntary collective bargaining. Congress also recognises that the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights provides for the right to negotiate and conclude collective agreements and welcomes the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights that prohibit discrimination against trade union members (the Wilson case) and confirm that the right to form and join trade unions includes the right to bargain collectively and the right to strike (the Demir and Baykara cases). Conference welcomes the commitment in the Programme for Government to reform the current law on employees' rights to engage in collective bargaining so as to ensure compliance by the State with recent judgements of the European Court of Human Rights. Conference instructs the incoming Executive Council to prioritise engagement with Government with a view to securing the enactment of legislation that would enable trade unions to engage in collect bargaining on behalf of our members, prohibit victimisation of members and activists and thereby comply with standards set by the ILO and the European Court of Human Rights.