It is calling on the Commission to investigate Ireland’s non-compliance with the fixed term workers directive, and Fixed Term Workers Act, 2003, the statute examined by the Labour Court in the run-up to its decision.

The 2003 Act provides protection to employees in the form of accrued rights, culminating after a set period, in the right to a contract of indefinite duration. However, exemptions on “objective grounds” are provided for.

In February 2009, the Court overturned a ruling by a Rights Commissioner in favour of the academic, Ann Buckley, awarding her a contract of indefinite duration, together with €5000 in compensation.

The full article from Industrial Relations News (Issue 31, 2 September 2009) is available here.

IFUT General Secretary, Mike Jennings, said that IFUT wanted complete transparency in the payment of allowances and was critical of those allowances which were not directly linked to the performance of extra duties. However, he was clear that with regard to those “legitimate” allowances that were paid to staff for taking on additional workloads, IFUT members would not be performing such role if they were not paid the allowance.

The full article from Industrial Relations News (Issue 30, 27 August 2009) is available here.

“In view of the crisis now facing our sector, I am proposing that the Heads of Irish Universities and all those in senior management in education unite with IFUT and other employee bodies in education, to work together to defend the entire sector,” Mr Jennings said.

The IFUT Press Release is available in full here.

“This report, and, in particular, the parts of it which relate to education, will come to be regarded as one of the most short-sighted documents in Irish education history. At a time when more and more people are turning to education as an intelligent, self-enhancing alternative to unemployment, how could any group of consultants recommend a total reduction of almost seven thousand jobs in education, two thousand of them in higher education alone?”

The IFUT Press Release is available is full here.

The Press Statement announcing the release of the report is available here.

The report itself is in two volumes, Volume I and Volume II.

Access to the report on the IFUT Website is restricted to IFUT members only.

This Framework was promised in the letter of 1 April from the HEA to the President/Provost of each of the seven Universities. This letter was sent in response to a letter from the Department of Finance to the Department of Education and Science in late March. In their letter, the HEA stated that “with effect from 27 March there should be no filling of vacancies by recruitment, promotion or the payment of an allowance for the performance of duties at a higher level, except possibly in the case of academic and support posts that are considered essential to maintaining core service activities”, pending the publication of the Framework arrangements.

The HEA Employment Control Framework document shall operate from 1 July. It is available here (Members only).

The transfer of these pension funds has been under discussion for a number of years and legislation was promised in the last mini-Budget. It is IFUT’s understanding that the Government wishes to “fast-track” the bill and have it passed by the Oireachtas and signed into law before the end of June.

The Rights Commissioner found in favour of IFUT in all areas of its submission. Specifically she said inter alia that:

• The Promotions Board changed the procedures without agreement and after the application had been submitted and assessed.
• There was no agreed appeals procedure.
• The member’s Freedom of Information request was not dealt with before he lodged a “without prejudice” complaint.
• The claimant was not told in advance that different values would be given to references depending on the qualification of the referee.

The Rights Commissioner also told NUIM to confirm to the member that his future promotional prospects would be in no way affected by the outcome of this promotions round.

Finally, the Rights Commissioner has also recommended the putting in place of a formal, agreed appeals process as a matter of urgency.

Both NUIM and IFUT have accepted the Recommendation and early implementation is expected.

The IFUT Press Release is available here.

The call follows a decision by IFUT members in NUI Maynooth to ballot for industrial action, following the decision of the college to issue a compulsory redundancy notice to a permanent staff member. The college move is a clear breach of all prevailing norms and understandings that preclude compulsory redundancies in the Public Sector, IFUT General Secretary, Mike Jennings, says.

Calling on the college to reverse its compulsory redundancy threat, Mike Jennings said, “it is ironic that this threat is being instigated at the same time that IBEC are citing permanency in employment in the public service as a reason for restrictions to pay increases in the current round of Partnership talks.” It is believed Maynooth is the first university to attempt to issue compulsory redundancy in this way.

Mike Jennings says: “The long-established guarantee of protection against compulsory redundancy in the public service is under serious threat; this has massive implications for academic staff in every college.” IFUT has referred the matter to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions who in turn have received confirmation from the Department of Finance that there is no change to the policy of no compulsory redundancies in the public service and none is contemplated. IFUT is awaiting a response to a formal complaint to the National Implementation Body (NIB), the highest dispute resolution body in the State.

The IFUT Press Release is available here.