SIPTU Kicks Off ‘Justice for Agency Workers Campaign’ in Ireland

A campaign for equal treatment for agency workers was launched by the Irish trade union federation SIPTU on 19 November at Liberty Hall in Dublin. The campaign is aimed at securing enabling legislation in Ireland to forbid employment agencies from circumventing existing equality provisions in labour legislation.

The 200,000-member Services, Industrial, Professional and Technical Union (SIPTU) held a press briefing in the afternoon on 19 November, and then conducted a full public hearing that evening with workplace testimony from victimised contract workers.

Under the heading “An Injury to One Is a Concern to All,” SIPTU launched a campaign that includes a petition drive to build support for legislation, as well as materials to secure equal treatment for contract workers in collective agreements. That campaign can be found here www.siptu.ie/agency.

“The abuse of agency workers is the most serious issue of substance in the workplace,” stated SIPTU General President Jack O’Connor at the launch of the campaign. “The absence of legislation to prevent abuse is not only detrimental to those directly affected, but also harms all other workers because it facilitates the undermining of standards,” he added.

SIPTU indicated on the day of the launch that Ireland is one of three EU countries in which temporary workers recruited through agencies can be employed at lesser terms and conditions than those in direct employment. O’Connor also hit out at the Irish government for being one of the few countries that is blocking an EU Directive on full rights for contract and agency workers.

“We cannot continue with the paradox of social partnership on the one hand, while we are virtually unique in Europe in our treatment of agency workers,” he said.

SIPTU estimates there are over 520 employment agencies operating in Ireland. The union is campaigning for agency work to be confined to a period no longer than one month, after which an agency employee must become directly employed by the primary employer.