The Unoffical Action Taken By Irish Ferries SIPTU Members Deserves Our 100% Support

international | worker & community struggles and protests | feature

Friday November 25, 2005 21:14

by SIPTU Activist

A SIPTU Activist Comments on the myth of social partnership stripped bare

An Irish Ferries Vessel The unoffical action and indeed the direct action taken by the SIPTU members on the two Irish Ferries Ships in Wales last night (November 24th) should be commenended and supported wholeheartedly by the leadership of SIPTU and ICTU. Both leaderships should now publicly support in the strongest possible terms the action taken by the Irish Ferries workers without reserve. Surely these workers must now be facing criminal proceedings by the managment and the owners of Irish Ferries?

It is unfortunate and regrettable that the SIPTU members of Irish Ferries have been left with no other alternative but to resort to this desperate but principled and very admirable and brave stand. It must be causing the leadership and bureaucracy of SIPTU an unwanted headache of migraine proportions. The direct action that the Irish Ferries workers have taken has shown that the Industrial Relations Act of 1990 should never have been even contemplated nor considered acceptable by our trade union bureaucracy when it was both discussed and finally introduced as legislation.

The Industrial Relations Act of 1990 prohibits actions of this very nature.Yet the leadership of SIPTU and ICTU have done nothing to have it repealed. IBEC and the Government have made their positions very clear right from the outset of this dispute.

IBEC by their attack on the trade union movement in the early stages of this dispute and their sudden descent into total silence mean that we can take it that it is IBEC that are leading the "Shock and Awe" tactics of Irish Ferries. Were we ever in doubt as to who really was setting the agenda? This government say they can do no more in this dispute.What did they do in the first place? Act as neutral observers? Let us remind ourselves how neutral this goverment is when employers exploit workers.

When the most widespread abuse of workers ever uncovered in this country was revealed on the construction sites of GAMA - what was the punishment that company recieved? A massive multi-million euro contract for the construction of one of the biggest road building jobs this state has ever undertaken. IBEC and the government have made their class allegiances very clear throughout this dispute.They are our class enemies.

This dispute has stripped bare the myth of social partnership. What a headache this all must be for our trade union leaders. 100% support must be given to the Irish Ferries workers. Our futures depend on it.