Events
PRESENTATION FROM KIERAN MULVEY, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF THE IRISH LABOUR RELATIONS COMMISSION
Date: 13/11/2013
At this briefing, we were joined by the Chief Executive of the Irish Labour Relations Commission, Mr Kieran Mulvey. He shared his reflections on industrial relations in the post-Haddington Road climate, with particular reference to issues of current relevance to ACESA members.
There will be many challenges to be addressed during the implementation of the Haddington Road Agreement. The reform programme will intensify over the coming years and the pace of change will continue to accelerate, so we all need to find better ways of managing change. It is important to build a relationship with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform
He gave some very good insights in to the thinking of DEPR on public sector reform and where they are on the process and a very important bit of ‘legal advice’ at the end.
Key Discussion Points
There was an awareness that implementation of reform is going to get more difficult in the years ahead, as cuts in pay and conditions erode staff willingness to cooperate.
The widespread nature of the ECF squeeze and outsourcing pressures was stressed
The importance of implementation and the need to keep pushing the reform programme as set out in Haddington Road was mentioned.
Ministerial contact should be a key
The likelihood of losing older/more experienced senior staff because of the pension arrangement due to expire in August.
Treatment of contract staff, agency staff etc appears to differ from one Agency to another
Many challenges lie ahead in implementing the Haddington Road Agreement.
The future of employee relations is fraught. Members should use the LRC if they feel that their contractual rights are being breached.
Evaluation
The response to the briefing by Kieran Mulvey, and the question and answer session afterwards, gave rise to an overwhelmingly positive response from most of the 32 members present.