SPRING 2009 VOL: 11 NO. 1

THERE IS A BETTER,FAIRER WAY

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Dear Colleagues,As I write this editorial we are preparing for the

Union’s Seminar in April, which takes places every

second year, when we have no Conference. This

year that Seminar will take place in Letterkenny

against a background of a severe economic

downturn and there is little doubt that much of our

time will be spent debating the impact of that

economic downturn on our members.

Much has been written about this subject and

indeed most people are fed up to the teeth with the

unending stream of bad news and the mood of

doom and gloom in the country which permeates

every level of society. The constant barrage of bad

news emanating from the media over the last

twelve to eighteen months almost has a feel of a

self-fulfilling prophecy. Countless column inches

and numerous hours of broadcasting time have

been used up in attempts to spell out the scale of

the problem and to parcel out the blame for the

situation in which we find ourselves. There is no

doubt that every country in the world is suffering

from the economic downturn but it is now an

accepted fact that the Irish situation has been

worsened by government policies and by the

crimes committed against our society by many of

the leaders of the Irish financial institutions. It has

never been so obvious that there is one law for the

rich and one law for the poor and it is sickening to

see the parade of media analysts now making

excuses for their banking friends and attempting to

shift the blame on to public sector workers. These

same financial gurus have now managed to

damage Ireland’s reputation internationally and as

a result Ireland’s credit rating has suffered greatly,

leading to greater difficulty for us as a country in

Editorial

Editor: Steve FitzpatrickSub-Editor: Imelda WallIssued by: Communications Workers’ Union,575 North Circular Road, Dublin 1.Telephone: 8663000 and Fax: 8663099E-mail: info@cwu.ieIncorporatingthe PTWU Journal, THE RELAY andTHE COMMUNICATIONS WORKERThe opinions expressed by contributors are notnecessarily those of the CWU.Photographs: John ChaneyPrinted by Mahons Printing Works, Dublin.

ContentsEditorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3Postal Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-7Telecoms Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-11Uni Global Union . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-12Uni Global Union - telecom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-15Esccu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Organising Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Education Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Congress - ICTU Women’s Seminar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Equality Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-23Out of crisis, fear and anger comes a plan . . . . . . . . . . 24-25Insurance Cover for Deliver Staff

using Private Vehicles (An Post) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25CWU Youth Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Sign up to CWU Website/Get into print . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Pensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27-29High-value export sector is central to future growth . . 30CWU Development Fund . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31-32CWU Intellectual Disability Fund . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33CWU Intellectual Disability Housing Fund . . . . . . . . . . . 34Orphans’ Pensions Scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35CWU People . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36-45Hibernian AVIVA Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46Call for CWU Members to consider becoming

Platelet Donors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47Book Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48-49Fund Projects application forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50CWU Membership Application Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51-52

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procuring finances through borrowing and in circumstances where

we can, thereby ensuring that we have to pay a higher interest rate

than other competing economies.

The government policies of an over-reliance on taxation from the

building and property boom and its shift away from personal taxation

to indirect taxation, has left a massive hole in the country’s tax take

following the collapse of the construction and property booms.

Failure to be prudent with the country’s finances in times of massive

budget surpluses has meant that we were not prepared for the rainy

day. There is also a sense of a distinct lack of leadership from the

present government and nobody is certain whether or not we have

reached the bottom of the recession and we all doubt the capacity of

the political leadership to help us out of the mess they have created.

Matters are not improved by the fact that the main opposition party,

Fine Gael, through their spokespersons continue to espouse right

wing liberal policies which are targeted at the public and ordinary

working people.

It is against the above unprecedented background that the Irish Congress of Trade Unions has attempted to

be a voice of reason on behalf of ordinary working people in this country. ICTU has attempted to develop

answers to the critical questions that face us as a nation and have attempted to develop those answers to deal

directly with the problems on the basis that everybody must pay according to their ability to do so. ICTU’s

position puts, as its priority, the protection of jobs and the creation of the conditions that will help the country

recover in the medium term.

It has always been a difficulty for the Trade Union movement to have its message carried by the media, as

the media continue to serve the people who own it and the people who have benefited most from the so-called

“Celtic Tiger”. In an attempt to fully explain the views of Congress, I have included as an insert in this edition

of Connect some of the papers prepared for Congress by its Chief Economist, Paul Sweeney. These papers

give the rationale and the outcome of the Congress deliberations along with its detailed proposals which believe

through discussion and agreement with the other social partners that Ireland’s best chance of recovery is by

spreading the burden in a much fairer way than we have witnessed to date. While it is now clear that the

situation we now find ourselves in is not the fault of ordinary working people, we all see on a daily basis,

members of our community, members of our family and many of our friends suffer the horror of job losses, pay

cuts and weakening of long-won conditions. In some cases, such actions are inevitable but there is little doubt

that there are also many unscrupulous employers who will use this situation in an opportunistic fashion and to

their own advantage, when all they have heard is that when the Titanic was sinking it was futile to say you were

not getting on the lifeboat because you hadn’t crashed the boat into the iceberg. Likewise we must deal with

the situation, despite the fact it is not of our making.

It is interesting to note that one of the bi-products of this crisis has been the increasing numbers of new Union

members, as people seek protection from the worst excesses of unscrupulous employers. It is a firm example

that ordinary people know and understand the value of a Union when times are hard and no one understands

that, even when difficult decisions have to be taken, that they should always be taken in a fair, open and honest

manner. For our part, we must ensure that in dealing with the difficult situations this crisis will throw up, that all

of our members are given every protection that they deserve from their Union in their individual employment,

that they are fully informed at all times of the options available to them and, that those options are open to them

in the fairest possible way.

Steve Fitzpatrick,General Secretary, CWU

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Postal Update

The Third Postal Directive has been finallypassed by the European Parliament and will nowbe transposed into Irish law so that our postalmarket will be opened fully to competition by thestart of 2011. We must remain focused onensuring that the law is transposed in a way thatdoes not lead to the ruination of the postal sector,as has happened in the UK with Royal Mail nowappearing destined to be partly privatised.

The CWU is working with UNI Post and Logistics to ensurethat we have a common position to avoid the potential worsteffects of the Directive and will lobby at all levels throughoutEurope. However this campaign can only work if it issupported locally by CWU Members at a national level andwith every member and branch targeting local representativesin the elections that will be taking place in June.

It is the intention of the Union to provide lobbyingmaterials to all branches in advance of these elections inorder that the members can seek clear commitments fromthose who are seeking their vote at a local and Europeanlevel. This is an important opportunity for us to influence apiece of legislation that will have a potentially profoundimpact on the working lives of all our postal members andwhich will ultimately affect all of our members as citizenswho avail of this vital public service.

As it is at present it would seem that the Directive and theCommission are completely lacking in any proper plan toprotect the key elements of the postal service and to ensuredue account of social considerations as is stated in recital 16of the new Directive:

‘This Directive is without prejudice to the competence ofMember States to regulate employment conditions in thepostal services sector, which should not, however, lead tounfair competition. Social considerations should be takeninto due account when preparing the opening up of thepostal market.’

It is clear that the Commission is using the excuse ofsubsidiarity for the Directive’s lack of important detail, butthat in itself can be an opportunity for us. We also need tohave a very direct, easily understandable and succinct policyplatform to keep pushing in all our lobbying and campaignwork.

Our proposed objectives are simple, we want to:

• Minimise adverse impact of directive on workers• Minimise adverse impact of directive on the general

public• Gain decent working conditions and workers rights in

ALL mail companies

Labour IssuesOn labour issues the policy should say that we want to avoidsocial dumping, establish market norms and standards foremployment terms and conditions and that the regulatorshould include in any licensing procedure the requirementfor all postal operators to conform to the Core Labourstandards, to comply with minimum wage legislation and toshow that they are not engaging in social dumping.

Union should also highlight the need to turn around thecurrent situation where for example in Germany the newentrants are saying that a minimum wage is a barrier tocompetition, by having a position that Art 16 should beinterpreted to mean that social dumping and paying less thana minimum wage and a social norm (as in the case of theNetherlands) is not only a prime example of social dumpingbut is also unfair competition to the incumbent.

Universal ServiceWe need a strong united policy position on how we viewUniversal Service. There are two issues for us:

• Provision and scope• Financing

A key for us in promoting our objectives for universalservice is the “Rights notion”. That is, in the DirectiveUniversal service is a right (art.3 “…users enjoy the right toa universal service…”)

RegulationThere is now a study being undertaken for the EuropeanCommission on the “best practices” for regulators. Ourpolicy document and lobby pack will have a consistent andsimple message on regulation. We should be ensuring thatin any regulatory regime there is:

• A regulator with clear functions• Enforcement mechanisms• Market monitoring

CWU to Target Local andEuropean Elections for Postal Agenda

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Postal Update

Agreement has been secured by the CWU with An Post forthe application of the Postal Operative Pay Scale nationwidefrom the beginning of this year. The Collection and DeliveryWork Practice Change Agreement provided for theintroduction of the Postal Operative Grade which is thereplacement for the previous grading structure of Post OfficeClerk, Postal Sorter and Postperson. The Postal OperativeGrade was first introduced at Ballyfermot DSU in July 2007as part of the roll out of the Office Redesign. The Companywould only however introduce the Postal Operative PayScale at offices where redesign was implemented.

The Union sought the assistance of the Monitoring Groupin having the introduction of the Postal Operative pay scaleapply at all offices. On the 9th December 2008 theMonitoring Group determined that the new Postal OperativePay Scale should be introduced nationwide with effect from1st January . Following further discussion between theUnion and the Company , with the assistance of theMonitoring Group, the following has been agreed forincremental credit purposes.

➣ The Postal Operative Grade and Pay Scale takes effectnationwide in all areas encompassed by the C&DAgreement from the 1st January 2009.

➣ The Pay Scale as at the 1st January 2009 is as follows:

➨ Point 1: €499.90➨ Point 2: €512.76➨ Point 3: €525.37➨ Point 4: €538.16➨ Point 5: €550.78

➣ Qualifying service from the 1st July 2007 is taken intoaccount in determining the point at which New Entrantsare assimilated and any future incremental dates.-

➣ Incremental Date for Staff to be determined byrecruitment date.

➣ Arrears in pay will only be calculated back to 1stJanuary 2009

➣ Postpersons recruited before 16th January 2006 and inreceipt of the 12.5% change allowance remain on theexisting Pay Scale

Set out below are some examples as to how the assimilationwill work.

Example 1Postperson A was recruited on the 1st May 2006.

On the 1st January 2009 he/she will move to the 2nd pointof the new scale. His /her incremental date will be 1st July.

Example 2Postperson B was recruited on the 1st October 2007.

On the 1st January 2009 he/she will move to the 2nd pointof the new scale. His /her incremental date will be 1stOctober.

Example 3Postperson C was recruited on the 1st May 2008.

On the 1st January 2009 he/she will move to the 1st point ofthe new scale. His /her incremental date will be 1st May .

Pay Scales of Postpersons/Postal Operative as on the 1stJanuary 2009.

31st December 2008 €479.33

1st January 2009 €512.76

1st July 2009 €525.37

31st December 2008 €442.29

1st January 2009 €512.76

1st May 2009 €525.37

31st December 2008 €450.20

1st January 2009 €512.76

1st October 2009 €525.37

POSTPERSONS POSTAL OPERATIVES

Point 9 €550.78 Point 5 €550.78

Point 8 €538.16 Point 4 €538.16

Point 7 €525.37 Point 3 €525.37

Point 6 €512.76 Point 2 €512.76

Point 5 €499.90 Point 1 €499.90

Point 4 €487.25

Point 3 €479.33

Point 2 €450.20

Point 1 €442.29

Postal OperativePay Scale to applyNationwide

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Postal Update

Filling Of Clerical AdminManagers PostsThe Union referred to the Monitoring Group an issue regarding theeligibility of managers to apply for manager/ supervisory vacanciesin the Clerical Admin Area. The Union’s view was that all clericalmanagers and supervisors that are encompassed by the terms of theClerical and Administrative Work Practice Change Agreementshould be able to avail of the terms set out in Section 9.2.1 i.e.

Existing managers and supervisors on the establishment at theCommencement Date of this agreement will retain the right toopt for vacant positions in their own grade and within their ownarea, subject to the criteria of suitability and seniority.

The Monitoring Group issued its determination on the 13th March2009 as follows:

It appears reasonable to the Monitoring Group therefore that,as the parties have separately agreed through both the

Collection and Delivery Work Practice Change Agreement andthe various Mails Processing Agreements, that all supervisoryposts in grades represented by the CWU be filled through opencompetitive selection processes, then a similar process shouldbe adopted for clerical managerial and supervisory posts. Thiswill have the effect of removing the current ‘bar’ which wouldeffectively be put in place if the terms of clause 9.2.1 wereextended to encompass clerical supervisors and managerswithin the Retail area.

Therefore, as and from now, positions at supervisory levelwithin the company should be filled in the first instance throughthe process outlined at 9.2.3 of the Clerical & AdministrativeWork Practice Change Agreement.

Clause 9.2.3 read as follows:

All positions due to be filled by promotion, if not filled by theprocess set out at 9.2.1 or 9.2.2 above, will be filled by meansof a competitive selection process, open to all grades in theCompany. Should no suitable candidate(s) emerge from theinternal process, the Company may advertise externally andappoint to such positions.

Simply the best must be the objective for all at An Post in thecurrent drive to improve the Quality of Service we providecustomers. An Post has been set a tough task for next day deliveryof 94% by ComReg, the Communications Regulator appointed bythe Minister for Communications. In the last couple of years majorstrides of improvement have been achieved, the highestperformance ever being recorded in 2007. More recently An Postwas awarded the International Post Corporation (IPC) Certificatefor Excellence for its management and processing of InternationalLetter Mail, achieving a standard of 95% next day delivery forincoming International Mail and 85% for Outgoing Mail.Separately a joint exercise associated with the introduction ofscanning of Collections has brought about a marked improvementin quality of service. These significant achievements have liftedthe current quality of service to 80% next day delivery nationwide.

The recovery from the period of mismanagement of theCompany by Curtin and his cohorts while well underway leaves amajor task ahead. It is not so long ago that Larry Donald, COO(Chief Operating Officer) defined his remit as to “Manage aDeclining Business”. In this regard he was successful as his teamactually managed to decline the business. While this internal threatto the very existence and long term viability of An Post hasdeparted, the fact remains that the external threats the Companyfaces such as Full Liberalisation in 2011, Competition,Technology, Funding of the Universal Service Obligation,Downstream Access and ComReg are all circling their wagons intheir efforts to take business off An Post, take work from ourmembers, which threatens the pay and conditions of our memberswhose families’ livelihoods depend on An Post.

The CWU has shown its ability to manage whatever crisis that

IMPROVEMENT IN QUALITY OF SERVICE IS IN OUR HANDS

Pictured l to r: Back Row: Pat Kenny, John McConnell, Dan Mackicey, Bill Colfer, John Boner, Donal Connell, Steve Fitzpatrick,Pat Knight, Gareth Bridgeman, Liam O’Sullivan, Joe Guinan, Mark Graham,

Front Row: Pat Compton, Charlie Kelly, Damien Tuohy, Emmanuel Cassidy, Jarlath Heneghan, John Whelan

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Postal Updatehas emerged at An Post to safeguard its long term viability whilealso protecting our members’ interests. The same cannot beattributed to all of the other stake holders in An Post. We are notinterested in a race to the bottom, but more the race to the top. Thefocus in putting the customers first, the drive for improvement inquality of service has to be our priority. There are compellingreasons as to why this should be the case, however, as workers atAn Post many of us who are lifers’ in this Organisation know it’sa priority, if for no other reason other than self preservation.

As outlined earlier there is much to be positive about in termsof the improvements made. An Post handles 3 million items perday, delivering to over one million addresses. The complexoperation involves 10,000 staff, 550 Delivery Service Units and4,000 deliveries nationwide. The Retail and Transport Networktogether with the Mails Centres are intrinsic links in the PostalChain. However, the customer has little interest in thecomplexities or difficulties associated with the delivery of mailposted in Donegal to any destination no matter how remote it maybe such as the top of Carrantuohill. All the customer wants is forAn Post to deliver it the next day. Furthermore, the Regulator hasdetermined that An Post should achieve 94% next day delivery ofthose 3 million items. Inexplicably the Government believes thatAn Post should do so at current prices and without any financialassistance for performing its Universal Service Obligation.

Consequently the Union and the Company have jointlyconcluded that the next 18 months is a critical time for An Post andthat we must jointly focus on improving the quality of services thatwe provide. The best method and the best possibility of beingsuccessful is adopting a partnership approach towards this. APartnership Group has been established at National level headed upby Seán McDonagh, National Officer, and its members consist of thePresident Charlie Kelly, Damien Tuohy, Galway and EmmanuelCassidy, Naas, National Executive Council members. In additionregional groups have been established. The focus and drive of thegroups is a root and branch examination of every aspect of the mailsoperation right across An Post. The focus is to put the customerfirst. The challenge is to change the organisation mindset to bringabout a culture change restoring pride in the Company we work forand the services we provide. There is no room for apportioningblame or pointing the finger, no them and us. The joint examinationbased on problem solving is the name of the game. In this respect wehave the ability to be simply the best. It is in our hands to improveAn Posts Quality of Service.

Is ComRegs Target Fair?To deal with the quality of service issue in its entirety one mustcritically analyse the way in which this important part of the postalmarket is regulated. The CWU would question the validity andthe appropriateness of the target of 94% for next day delivery. Thistarget applies to all single piece mail which representsapproximately one third of the total mail delivered by An Post.Bearing in mind that Ireland has a largely rural population (40%)it is useful to consider the targets that have been imposed byregulators across other member states in the European Union. Forexample, smaller densely populated countries such as Belgium andLuxembourg have a next day delivery target of 95%, but when youconsider other countries that have more in common with Irishgeography and population levels, we see that the next day deliverytargets are reduced, e.g. Germany (80%), France (83%), Greece(87%) and Italy (89%). In this context, it would not be

unreasonable to consider that the target of 94% for a largely ruralpopulation like Ireland is excessive and unsuited to the uniqueelements that make up the Irish Postal Market.

Another consideration is the fact that the 94% target appliesequally throughout the year and does not make an allowance forsignificantly increased volumes over the busy Christmas period. Itis neither fair nor equitable to expect a complex delivery systemthat is designed to run efficiently for 50 weeks of the year whilstdealing with “a normal” volume of mail to be able to deal with ahuge increase in mail volumes for two weeks of the year butwithout significant additional resources to meet the demand.ComReg’s ‘Quality of Service’ measurement methodologiesshould factor in the exceptionally busy periods such as Christmas,which puts this otherwise fit for purpose system under particularstrain at specific times of the year.

Royal MailIn addition the CWU would be generally concerned about a

regulatory regime which might blindly pursue competition at allcosts. Looking at the experience of Royal Mail in the UK, thePostal Regulator has effectively been sacked because of its blindpursuit of competition and the liberalisation agenda. This has ledto the financial collapse of Royal Mail due to unfair competition,a severe erosion of standards and service as well as a grave threatto the USO. The Labour Government now feels it has no choicebut to part-privatise a public institution that has been in existencefor over 100 years. Liberalisation is a reality. The need to improveQuality of Service is part of that reality and whilst positiveprogress is being made on both of these fronts it is critical that thiscontinues in the context of the Postal Market that is regulated in afair and equitable manner in the interest of every citizen equally.In any event, while the scale of the challenges is enormous, wemust put our own house in order first.

COM REGComReg is the National Regulatory Authority for the Irish PostalSector. Among its stated objectives are:➢ Focus on achieving improvements in Quality of Service,

by setting targets for delivery of mail and monitoringperformance.

➢ Consider applications from An Post for price increases.

DOWNSTREAM ACCESSIs the term used to describe mail which has been collected anddistributed by a competitor, but is handed to An Post to deliver.The ability for competitors to utilise An Posts Network(analogous to local loop unbundling in the Telecoms sector)would be a serious threat particularly for the Mails Centres.

UNIVERSAL SERVICE OBLIGATIONThis guarantees that all Irish citizens can receive mail five daysa week, at a common price, irrespective of location. An Postprovides the USO in Ireland. The funding of this is a matter forthe Irish Parliament.

LIBERALISATION OF THE POSTAL SERVICESThe European Union has decided that full liberalisation of thePostal Services will take place in Ireland as and from the 1stJanuary 2011. There will be no further delay in opening up of themarkets for Ireland.

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Telecoms UpdateOver the past number of months the Union havehad to grapple with a number of change issuesincluding, but not limited to, the items reportedon below.

LFI. (Line Fault Index)An investment programme to develop and improve all physicalelements within the Access Network has been approved. Thisinvestment, which it is planned to roll out over the next four years,is of the order of €200 M. and has been driven by ComReg byway of a Decision Notice. The type of work involved will include

• Large Scale Renewal• Cabinet Replacement• Small Scale Renewal• Pressurisation• DP Programmes• Defective Plant/Component Replacement• Network Sealing.

Due to the volume of work and the time pressures, both eircomand contractor staff are involved in the various programmes. (Themix of the various work programmes is the subject of regulardiscussion between a Telecoms Executive Sub Group and theCompany) However in recent weeks this investment programme,in its totality has come under additional scrutiny due to a numberof factors, not least of which, is the overall financial position of theCompany. Continuing investment in the Network is a key priorityfor the Union.

Plan and Design ReorganisationFollowing a series of meetings the Telecoms Executive haveagreed a reorganisation of the Plan and Design area and a summaryof the agreement’s principal aspects are outlined below.

Plan DesignRe-organisation will merge the Plan and Design functions intoflexible solutions teams in 3 areas as follows:

• East Area• North Area• South Area

The Plan Design Team Managers will have responsibility formanaging integrated teams of Plan/Design team members.

The focus of Capital investment has moved to ‘solution’ basedplanning and design. The move to area focused integrated plan anddesign teams, which will have ‘end to end’ responsibility.

The requirements going forward are for local teams, under theleadership of the Plan Design Team Managers, to have localresponsibility for solution plan design but be flexible to supportother areas where business requirements dictate e.g. high volumerequiring flexible work allocation.

Planners may be assigned designer work (and vice versa) whenworkload dictates [supported by training where necessary]. Basedon workload volumes, teams may be assigned work in other

exchange areas either within the existing Area, or across Areaboundaries. It is anticipated that this will not significantly affectoperation within existing day subsistence boundaries as per currentarrangements.

Bureau• There will be 2 bureau teams with 14-16 bureau staff per team• There will be one Geo Data Management team• Bureau teams will carry out full range of functions (e.g. As

builts, ESM Surveys, DBYD, Traffic Management)• The Bureau will have a national remit and there will be

flexibility across teams / areas in terms of work allocation

Project RolesA maximum of two such roles has been agreed.

FLMs (Front Line Managers)Under the 2008 SA/SD reorganisation and change programme anumber of FLM positions, 89 in total, were created. The filling ofthese positions became a point of serious contention between theUnion and the Company over the past few months it is fair to saythis is one issue in the SA/SD agreement we could have handledbetter. In summary the Company, following an internal recruitmentprocess, wished to fill a significant number of these positions byway of external recruitment. After intervention by the Union thenet result was that internal staff filled 82 of the positions with thebalance being filled by external recruitment. The Union iscurrently in the process of bringing the “new” recruits intomembership. All of the unsuccessful CTM’s have been placed infull time roles in the Operations area

WOSAT (Network Engineering)Following discussions it has been agreed to “trial” WOSAT i.e.the Works Order Scheduling and Allocation Tool. The purpose ofthe trial is to develop and test some new systems and processesthat are designed to facilitate the effective allocation of work toboth internal build teams and contractor staff.

The trial is being conducted out of the Waterford WCC and isbeing monitored by a joint sub group with Union Executive andbranch representation under the auspices of Plenary Partnership. Afull report on the outcome of the trial will go to the TelecomsExecutive.

R.B.U.A number of people have completed an extensive trainingprogramme over a long period of time. These individuals are nowperforming L.F.I. duties in teams in their own geographic areas.This initiative will decrease contractor involvement in the L.F.I.project.

This agreement is seen as a start to deploying more techniciansfrom the RBU into the operations area

Service Assurance Winter ResponseNetwork operations have an obligation to deliver a number of

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Telecoms Updatecustomer service levels under our Operational Level Agreements(OLA). This obligation is further established and now mandatedunder the recent ComReg directives issued under the UniversalService Obligation imposed on eircom.

Within Service Assurance, the first target threshold is theachievement of the resolution of 80% of customer fault reportswithin two working days.

The achievement of the mandated targets was always going tobe challenging and requires a flexible resource managementapproach.

1. Current StatusThe service levels in the first operational quarter have slipped to alevel below what we have been previously able to deliver in thewinter period. The two-day restoration level dropped to 60% anddipped below 60% for eight weeks during the quarter. This wasdriven by the unusually high arrival rate of faults throughout thesummer period. Our storm response plan was activated to deal withthe individual storm incidents during the summer but in essence atno stage did we hit a summer season run rate.

We are facing a significant challenge to recover and carry anacceptable service offering into and through the winter period.Fault arrival rates show no signs of abating and a number ofoperational units are stressed.

2. ResponseBased on average daily fault rates, team capability and the backlogcarried, we have identified twenty operational team areas thatrequire ongoing assistance to achieve a service level.

It is intended to move people from Network Engineering andService Delivery to fault repair activity in the target areas. Thepeople will be assigned based on their ability to operate asindependent fault repair technicians and will be chosen in such away to best preserve the operational ability of the donor teamswithin Delivery and network engineering.

The mobilisation will remain in place up to the implementationof the new organisational work stacks as a number of the resourceissues will be addressed under that project. The ongoing supportrequirements will be assessed at that point, again informed by thefault arrival rates and any backlog that might exist at that time.

3. MethodologyThe people moving to fault repair will, on a temporary basis, reportto the Service Assurance CTM. Where the people are already onAdvantex works management, system based work allocation willcontinue. Where people do not have blackberrys, the work will beassigned to the service assurance CTM who will manuallydistribute to the technicians and make the necessary clearancearrangements. As a matter of urgency Service Assurance willassemble a stock of blackberry’s for distribution to the mobilisedtechnicians at which time full control will revert to the operationalcentre.

The identification of the mobilising people will commence inthe delivery and engineering organisation on October 23rd. with aview to commence the activation on resumption on TuesdayOctober 28th.

4. Resource CapabilityIt is expected that the Service Delivery organisation will providefifteen (15) of the required people while Network Engineering willprovide thirty five (35)

5. Staff ImpactThe mobilised people will work in, or close to, their normaloperational areas. Within network engineering, continued delivery of the capitalprogramme may require assignment of planned work to thecontracting community. A full report was issued to Branches.

Project P.E.A.T.S. Pemac Efficiencies & AssetTagging SystemThe Telecoms Executive agreed the following trial:Eircom Facilities Management a nationally based organisationprovides a wide range of services across the eircom propertyportfolio. A large proportion of these services relate to criticalequipment essential to eircom meeting its service delivery andregulatory commitments.

Asset tagging and bar-coding all equipment and plant is nowcomplete. The introduction of a scanner, which is married to a Q9hand held phone device via Bluetooth, will deliver live informationabout plant and equipment when scanned in through PEMAC aweb based system. The technician while on site will be able to logwork to himself and view outstanding work reducing the need forrepeat visits and or unnecessary travel.

ProposalCommence with a Pilot to trial the Q9 hand held device andscanner with 20 staff. The proposed start date for the pilot is 23rdFebruary and finish date is 25th May. In order to evaluate the trialand report on findings it is proposed to form a project focus groupwhich will include a technician, supervisor, manager andpartnership member. The focus group will meet every two weeksduring the trial to make suggestions and recommendations andreport on the system functionality.

Benefits• Instant logon pick work from Pemac reducing non value added

time(repeat visits) • Scan equipment at location / log work Access equipment history• View scanned jobs and other reports at location / root cause

fault analysis• Real-time reporting on jobs when complete/ detailed equipment

lifecycle analysis• Improved efficiency / productivity • Move contractor work to eircom staff • Estimated €50k contractor work savings• Ediary email & ESS capability for staff

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CWU Delegation meetsOireachtas CommitteeChairmanOn Wednesday 11th March a delegation from CWUincluding Deputy General Secretary, Terry Delaney andHead of Regulation, Ian McArdle met with the Chairman ofthe Joint Oireachtas Committee for Communications, MJNolan TD. Also in attendance as representatives for theCWU were Jim O’Flynn (NEC), Pat Tobin and Ger Falveywho had helped arrange the meeting. In attendance withDeputy Nolan was former Committee Chairman JohnCregan TD and Senator Martin Brady both of whom areformer eircom staff and CWU members.

The CWU used the meeting as an opportunity to speakfrankly about its concerns for the future of the Irish telecomsindustry. The Union made it clear at the outset of themeeting that it wanted to highlight the concerns and interestsof all of its members not just those working in eircom. As aUnion with members in such diverse operations as eircom,Vodafone, BT Ireland, O2, KN Networks, Meteor and TESL,securing the sustainable future of a telecoms infrastructurethat all companies can rely is a key concern of the Union.

The delegation highlighted some key issues as follows:

• The need for continued and sustainabledevelopment of a first class telecoms infrastructureincluding a high speed broadband network thatserves every citizen

• The current eircom telecoms network is thefoundation on which the Irish telecoms industry isbuilt. Most other operators rely on it to provide aservice. Securing the long term viability of thisnetwork will underwrite the future of Irish telcoms.

• Development of a Next Generation Network (NGN)will only happen with government support andintervention and a changed regulatory environment.The market, left to its own devices, will neverdeliver the kind of telecoms infrastructure that thiscountry needs to secure its place as a dynamicknowledge based economy that can competeeffectively on the global stage.

• Most other major developed economies are usingthe current economic crisis to develop their telecomsinfrastructure. They are using public funding tosecure employment whilst creating a piece ofinfrastructure that is recognised by every economicindicator as being critical to long term economicsecurity and efficiency.

The delegation pointed to the fact that the telecoms sector ishugely important in the national economy, with a turnover in2008 of €4.4Bn (2.5% of GDP). The health of the sectorand ability of key operators to invest in it is critical for any

kind of meaningful economic recovery. The claim in the‘Building Ireland’s Smart Economy’ document that €700minvestment will be invested annually in telecoms is now notrealistic in the current environment. The delegationsuggested that the Government can influence the widerpolicy environment to encourage investment in the sector.In particular, the regulatory model must recognise the riskinvolved in network investment.

Provision of high speed broadband in Ireland is key torebuilding the economy. In its public policy documents theGovernment claims it wants to ‘develop first classinfrastructure that will improve quality of life andcompetitiveness of Irish business’ and indeed the Ministerfor Communications, Eamonn Ryan TD, has stated that thegovernment wants to see the development of a ‘truly nationalhigh speed broadband network’ that ‘leaves no citizenbehind.’ It is the view of the CWU that the market alonewill not provide this much needed infrastructure.

A cursory glance at what is happening internationally andyou will see that the UK regulator has done a deal with BTto change the regulatory rules there so that it can earn adecent return on a £1.5bn investment in a high speed fibreoptic network. In the US the Obama administration ismaking an $8b investment in high speed infrastructure. Afailure to act now will see Ireland continue its downwardslide in competitiveness terms and likely see more jobs lostat a time when the economy can ill afford the further loss ofquality jobs in a sector that could, if it was properlyincentivised, become the engine room of our economicrecovery.

CWU Calls on Members toLobby their MEPsSince the beginning of the EU review on the telecomlegislative framework, CWU in conjunctions with UNI-Europa and its members have been actively lobbyingpolitical decision-makers about our concerns regarding thefuture of the telecom industry in Europe. In particular, UNI-Europa has been addressing the problem of therepresentation of Trade Unions as key stakeholders of theindustry and the question of long-term investment in thesector.

When the European Parliament voted last year onproposed EU Telecoms legislation it included workers asstakeholders on the question of functional separation, whichwas a victory for the Union movement across the EU.However, the Council of Ministers did not adopt the sameposition. On the contrary, their version is a step backignoring workers as stakeholders. So UNI-Europa islaunching a new lobbying campaign, to reinsert workers asstakeholders and support the build out of a universalEuropean high-speed internet in the second reading of thelegislation which will take place at the end of April.

We are asking that every CWU member gets involved. We

Telecoms Update

11

need to increase the pressure on decision-makers throughletter writing, phone calls and one on one visits. Europeanelections are in June; so hearing from constituents during therun up to the election will carry extra significance.Negotiations between the European Parliament and theCouncil have already started, so MEPs and ministers need tohear concerns right away up until the Parliament’s plenaryvote in April. Outlined below is a sample letter that can beused in your lobbying activity:

EU Telecom Package needs toinvest in High-SpeedNetworks, create jobs andrecognise workers.

Dear Member of the European Parliament/Minister/(...),

As a Trade Union representing (number of your members)workers in the telecom industry, we are concerned by thetelecom package the European Union is debating right now.

At a time when Europe is facing a serious economicrecession and the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs

throughout the Union, the telecom package can be animportant part of an economic stimulus plan for creatingquality jobs by making needed investments in high-speedinternet and expanding radio spectrum. Failure to pass theright telecom reform package risks putting Europe furtherbehind some of our largest trading partners such as theUnited States and Asia as well as deepening the recession.

It is vital that we establish a European telecom legislationthat keeps us competitive, strengthens European companiesand creates quality jobs. These objectives can only bereached if we encourage long-term investment in networksand technologies such as a true universal high-speedinternet by ensuring an appropriate degree of risk sharingconcerning investments as well as by establishing regulatorycoherence and predictability.

Above all, it is important that all stakeholders have avoice, including Trade Unions, on telecommunicationsissues impacting them.

The current wording of the Council Common Positiondoes not allow for this and in view of the EuropeanParliament’s second reading we urge you to consider ourconcerns on the telecom package as explained in ourposition paper that you will find enclosed.

Yours sincerely

(…)

Telecoms Update

UNI Global Union today welcomed the introductionof legislation into the US House of Representativesand Senate that would allow workers to join Unionswithout fear of management retaliation andpledged its support to a worldwide solidaritycampaign.

“This is key legislation that will give Americanworkers freedom from fear when it comes toorganising. The depth and viciousness of Union-busting tactics in the United States areunconscionable.” said UNI General Secretary PhilipJennings. “The Employee Free Choice Act will letworkers stand together in the US to improve theirlives and working conditions. It will also set anexample that will help raise working conditionsglobally.”

Jennings said that UNI will be mobilising its 20million members worldwide in a solidaritycampaign to support the work of its US memberUnions, who have been part of a grass-rootsmovement of workers, labour Unions, community,religious, environmental and progressive groupssupporting the bill. UNI believes that having a lawthat protects workers’ right to Unionise in the

United States is vital to winning Union recognitionand bargaining rights world-wide. Americancompanies have been exporting their abusivelabour practices to every country they do businessin and foreign companies have eagerly embracedthose practices when they cross the US border. Itis clear that without legislation protecting workers,multinational companies will treat workers aspoorly as they can.

“When it becomes law, the Employee FreeChoice Act would be a huge boon to workingpeople and turn the tide of anti-Union, anti-workerattacks that have been stock in Trade for many UScompanies who have used every tactic at theirdisposal to intimidate workers who want toUnionise and driven down Union representationlevels even as workers have seen their pay shrink,their healthcare erode and their working hoursincrease,” said UNI President and UFCW PresidentJoe Hansen. When passed, the Employee FreeChoice Act would give US workers a free and fairchance to form a Union, hold anti-Union employersaccountable and force employers to stop draggingout contract negotiations.

In the US, currently workers have to win arepresentation election against their ownmanagement as part of the recognition process.Employers can recognize instead based onmajority sign up but it is up to them.

“Employee Free Choice is about restoringprivate sector bargaining rights in the US that havebeen stripped away over the past 40 years.Majority sign up as the basis for Union recognitionis the global standard,” said CommunicationsWorkers of America President Larry Cohen. “Thislegislation would even the terms of recognition sothat workers could sign up a majority and then berecognized to bargain collectively.”

President Barack Obama, Vice President JoeBiden and Labour Secretary Hilda Solis all supportthe Employee Free Choice Act. The first hurdle maybe getting 60 US Senators to vote for “cloture” oran end to debate on the bill and a formal vote.

The US Chamber of Commerce and othercorporate lobbying groups have spent millions ofdollars trying to persuade Senators andRepresentatives – both Republican and Democrat– to vote against the bill.

UNI welcomes introduction of EmployeeFree Choice Act in US Congress

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UNI Global Union today welcomed the support of the Obama administration for workers and Union rights afterthe President invited Union leaders to the White House to be on hand as he announced the formation of a middleclass task force and signed several executive orders that will benefit workers.

The White House Middle Class Task Force will focus on ways to support and enlarge the middle class and willconduct outreach with labour Unions and other groups on the issue.

“President Obama has hit the ground running on Union issues,” said UNI General Secretary Philip Jennings. “Aswe move toward the G20 summit in April, we hope that this is a sign he will be championing job creation andworkers rights when he meets with other world leaders.”

On Friday, just days after being sworn into office, President Barack Obama and Vice-President Joe Bidenwelcomed the officers and Presidents of Change to Win, the officers and Executive Council members of the AFL-CIO and the Presidents of NEA and NTEU to the White House. The event was in stark contrast to the completeshut-out of Unions and workers’ rights advocates during the George W. Bush administration.

“I believe we need to reverse many of the policies toward organized labour we’ve seen these last eight years,policies with which I have sharply disagreed. I do not view the labour movement as part of the problem; to me,and to my administration, labour Unions are a big part of the solution. We need to level the playing field forworkers and the Unions that represent their interests,” Obama said at the event.

UNI is backing its US members in their fight for passage of the Employee Free Choice Act, a bill that would giveworkers the right to join Unions and collectively bargain without fear of retribution from their employers. UNI andits Unions believe that this legislation is vital to protecting the middle class in the United States.

The new middle class task force, which will be chaired by Vice-President Biden, is charged with raising the livingstandards of middle class, working families in America by:

• Expanding education and lifelong training opportunities • Improving work and family balance • Restoring labour standards, including workplace safety • Helping to protect middle class and working-family incomes • Protecting retirement security

These themes are essential for protecting workers not just in the US but worldwide, UNI said.

“If you want to find the socially-responsible solution to this worldwide economic crisis then Unions need to havea seat at the table,” Jennings said.

President Obama said protecting US workers’ right to Unionise was vital to maintaining the middle class.

“Because we know that you cannot have a strong middle class without a strong labour movement. And weknow that strong, vibrant and growing Unions can exist side by side with strong, vibrant and growing businesses.This is not an either-or proposition between the interests of workers and the interests of shareholders. TheAmerican economy is not – and has never been – a zero-sum game,” Obama said.

The executive orders signed by Obama on Friday will also give a boost to workers. They require federalcontractors to post a balanced notice of workers’ rights; prevent use of government funds for anti-Union activity;and give workers a chance to keep their jobs when a federal contract providing services to a federal buildingchanges hands.

For more information on the Middle Class Task force: www.AStrongMiddleClass.gov

UNI Global Union Welcomes ObamaAdministration’s Commitment to US Labourand Decent Work

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UNI unveils new look that puts people firstOn March 2, UNI Global Union launched its new logo, which puts itsfocus on people, literally, in the centre of its brand. At a ceremonyunveiling the new UNI image at its headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland,General Secretary Philip Jennings said that as the global Union’s tenthanniversary approaches, it is important to that UNI puts the spotlighton its 20 million members worldwide. The new logo uses a human figureto make that connection between UNI and its members. “Spring is theseason of change,” Jennings said. “This is the moment to re-launch thepublic image.” He said the new logo shows that UNI is putting “peoplefirst.” In line with changes, UNI Telecom bulletin and website has got anew look as well. You are welcome to tell what you think about thesechanges writing us at: telecom@uniglobalUnion.org

UNI welcomes introduction of Employee FreeChoice Act in US Congress

The Employee Free Choice Act, legislation that would restore vital Union rights to US workers, was introduced in the Senateand the House of Representatives. “This is key legislation that will give American workers freedom from fear when it comesto organising. The depth and viciousness of Union-busting tactics in the United States are unconscionable.” said UNIGeneral Secretary Philip Jennings. “The Employee Free Choice Act will let workers stand together in the US to improve theirlives and working conditions. It will also set an example that will help raise working conditions globally.”

AT&T Mobility Reach Tentative AgreementThe Communications Workers of America (CWA) has reached a tentative agreement covering more than 20,000 AT&TMobility workers. The agreement provides real gains for workers, including improvements in the retail stores compensationplan and the establishment of a new career path for customer service representatives. The CWA bargaining committee wasdetermined to make inroads in these critical areas and succeeded, resulting in a tentative agreement that provides goodeconomic gains for Mobility workers and addresses workers’ priority issues. The proposed settlement provides for acompounded wage increase of 8.8% over the four-year contract term, along with a $500 bonus. Other importantimprovements addressed monitoring and quota relief. CWA Executive Vice President Anne Hill said the bargaining teamworked long and hard hours, “displaying both patience and toughness” to get a good agreement that addresses Mobiliyworkers’ critical issues. Bargaining covering 125,000 CWA-represented workers at AT&T got underway Feb. 24. CWArepresents another 22,000 workers at AT&T Mobility covered by separate contracts.

CEPU calls for greater protections for membersAustralian CEPU National President and CEPU Communications Division Secretary, Ed Husic appeared before the SenateInquiry into the Rudd Government’s Fair Work Bill today on behalf of CEPU members.

E. Husic, in his appearance before the Inquiry, urged the Committee to consider the CEPU’s proposals on strengtheningthe Bill in some aspects, but welcomed other areas of improvement as against the current WorkChoices legislation.

He focussed on the way Telstra was attempting to squeeze the most out of the WorkChoices laws before they werechanged. He highlighted the rapid rollout of non-Union deals in Telstra - and how desperate the corporation had becomeas members rejected the offers. Read the full article at: http://www.uniglobalUnion.org/Apps/iportal.nsf/pages/20090202_vf7pEn

VZ Connected Solutions Techs Awarded $2 MillionIn February, nearly 250 CWA technicians at Verizon Connected Solutions Inc., shared a back pay award of more than $2million, the result of an arbitration decision that found that VCSI failed to pay workers for performing work of higher-paidsenior techs. The workers maintain, install and repair telephony, voice and FiOS for VCSI in Maryland and Northern Virginia.

This arbitration award is a great victory for the workers and our Union,” said Collins. “It shows the value that a Unioncontract has when a company tries to get around its legal obligation to employees.”

The arbitration ended a more than two year fight by CWA to get the Verizon subsidiary to pay the Multimedia ServicesTechnicians the pay they deserved for performing the work of senior technicians, including the downloading and installationof firmware and software.

telecom

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Nitel Workers Reject Proposed DownsizingThe workers of the Nigeria Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) have rejected the downsizing being proposed by themanagement of the company as a way of reducing cost and ensure prompt payment of workers’ salaries. In view of this,the workers are planning a showdown with the management of NITEL should it proceed with the implementation of the planwithout offsetting the salary arrears owed the workers. It was reported that the management of NITEL has concluded plansto sack 1500 workers, a decision, the workers described as a way of punishing them for demanding their salaries andother allowances. Minister of Information and Communications, Prof. Dora Akunyili, has said the management of the NITELcannot send away half of its employees without getting the consent of the Federal Government.

The UK: Airwave Workers Vote Yes for Strike ActionThe CWU has issued notice to emergency telecoms network provider Airwave, owned by PE firm Macquarie, for 2 days ofstrike action in a dispute over compulsory redundancies. Strike action affects 180 Airwave workers, including UK-widefield engineers and the network management centre in Rugby. Andy Kerr, CWU deputy general secretary, said: “It isunfortunate that staff have been pushed into the difficult decision of taking strike action. However, the refusal of Airwaveto reconsider compulsory redundancies has left us no choice. Voluntary approaches to redundancies can make a hugedifference to staff at difficult times and we will fight unnecessary compulsory cuts at all times.”

G. Mitchell, national official with responsibility for Airwave, said: “This is a very clear result demonstrating the strengthof feeling among Airwave members. We would hope that this result will make Airwave reconsider their compulsoryredundancies and approach this difficult situation with more consideration for their staff.” A picket line will be in place atthe Rugby network management centre during strike days.

Hong Kong telecom workers protest forced leaveOn February 22, a few hundred workers from Hong Kong’s leading phone operator PCCW marched to protest a cost-cutting plan requiring employees to take up to 2 unpaid days off a month. Workers marched peacefully in the centralfinancial district toward the government headquarters and called on the government to help resolve the dispute with theiremployer. PCCW runs fixed-line, mobile phone, broadband and TV services and has 16,200 employees.

UNI Telecom Represented in the ITU MeetingThe 7th World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators meeting took place in Cairo, Egypt, on March 3-5. The meeting wasorganized by the Telecommunication Development Bureau of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and hostedby the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology of the Government of Egypt. Among other issues, such asICT household statistics, benchmarking information society developments, international data collection and dissemination,the meeting addressed measuring the impact of telecommunication development on the creation of employment.

UNI Telecom was represented by Brother Kato Tomoyasu, President of NWJ Japan and the Vice-President of UNITelecom. He made a presentation regarding the impact of ICT on employment and the convergence. He stressed theimportance of proactive investment in Next Generation Network (NGN) and broadband access having a great effect on thevitalization of the economy and creation of jobs.

There were 193 participants from ITU-D member countries government representatives, UN agencies, telecomcompanies, and research institutes. Brother Kato was the only the person representing the labour movement. For a longtime UNI was trying to build appropriate relationship with ITU therefore his participation in this event was very significant.UNI telecom and its affiliates have to develop stronger participation in order to reflect workers’ voice in ITU policy. The presentation can be downloaded at:www.itu.int/md/dologin_md.asp?lang=en&id=D06-DAP2B.1.3.7-C-0008!!PDF-E

UNI europa calls for investment in high-speed networksUNI-Europa has launched a new lobby campaign calling on EU decision-makers to support investment in high-speedinternet, create jobs and recognize workers as important stakeholders in the telecom sector. In a letter sent to Membersof the European Parliament, UNI-Europa urges politicians to give the European economy a stimulus by establishing acoherent and future-oriented EU telecom legislation. The telecom package must ensure regulatory predictability and anappropriate degree of risk sharing in order to encourage long-term investment in NGN and the creation of quality jobs.Furthermore, UNI-Europa highlighted the need to recognise workers as industry stakeholders and to provide for a socialimpact analysis before regulatory measures are taken. Until the plenary vote of the European Parliament at end of April, UNI-Europa members are invited to actively engage in the lobbying activities by contacting their local MEPs and other politiciansduring the run-up to the European elections.

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Connect response to Ofcom NGA announcementUNI’s British affiliate Connect welcomes the announcement from Ofcom today on super-fast broadband and the recentprogress in public policy to stimulate NGA development. These changes in policy and regulation are aimed at creating theright framework for the deployment of next generation access (NGA) broadband in the UK. The statement marks an advancein the development of regulatory certainty. This should mean that investors will be able to achieve a reasonable andproportionate return on investment. Connect has been calling for regulatory clarity and stability as an essential preconditionto the stepping up of NGA investment. The statement indicates Ofcom’s awareness of the current pace and scale of changein the telecoms market and there is acknowledgement of the limits of a purely market driven approach.

ADE Press for Broadband AccessThe Alliance for Digital Equality (ADE) briefed members of Congress on the critical need to bring high speed broadbandaccess to citizens in underserved communities. Communication Workers of America is a member of ADE, along withcorporate, consumer, public policy and other organizations. CWA senior director George Kohl outlined CWA’s two-yeareffort to raise the alarm that the United States was falling far behind the nations of the world in terms of citizen access tohigh speed Internet and the promise that technology offers. CWA’s “Speed Matters” campaign has pressed for the buildoutof true high speed broadband networks in the U.S. as the necessary economic engine of the 21st century.

Australia: CEPU on Telstra CEO resignationThe announcement by Telstra Chief Executive Sol Trujillo of his resignation as the head of the Telco Company in June hasbeen welcomed by the CEPU, whose members have been outraged by the enormous arrogance their employer has treatedregulators, customers, staff and the federal government.

Divisional President Len Cooper said that Mr Trujillo’s time in the top role at Telstra has been an unmitigated disaster forthe company. “Mr Trujillo will return to the USA leaving an industrial mess behind at Telstra, with workers vowing to fighton until their industrial rights are recognised and fairness and decency are once again restored in Telstra employmentrelations” said Mr Cooper.

“The chaos in industrial relations has been a hallmark of the Trujillo leadership which has been caused entirely by Telstramanagement’s stubborn refusal to recognise their employees’ rights to Union representation and collective bargaining,rejecting fairness and decency in the industrial practices. The commencement of Mr Trujillo in the Telstra multi million dollartop job was accompanied by huge drop in the Telstra share price from which the Telco share price has never sincerecovered.”

Mr Cooper said that the leadership of Mr Trujillo was an unmitigated disaster which oversaw the company’s completearrogant management style and culminating in the disastrous bid for the national broadband rollout, later rejected by thefederal government on the grounds of non compliance. “With Mr Trujillo announcing his resignation today, workers can againhope that some decency and fairness will be restored to the iconic Australian Company,” said Mr Cooper

Joint Statement from CONNECT and CWUUNI’s British affiliates, Connect and CWU, are concerned that BT management’s approach on Performance Managementis putting unacceptable pressure on the members. Both Connect and CWU members have cited numerous occasionswhere arbitrary targets have been set for PiPs (e.g. bottom 10% must be on PiPs, someone on every team) despite it beingcompletely contrary to BT policy.

Both Unions have raised these issues when they have arisen and successfully had those dealt with but are concernedthat this remains the approach from far too many senior managers. Connect and CWU deplore the pressure brought onConnect members who are threatened by their managers that if they don’t put their staff on PiPs, they will be placed onPiPs themselves.

Connect and CWU reject this management approach that leads to an intimidating and aggressive atmosphere in BTworkplaces, which can only undermine BT’s stated goal of being a high performing company. Our members deserve to betreated with dignity and respect at work. Performance Management must be about positively motivating BT people to getthe best from BT people, not about ‘managed exits’ and not to arbitrary timetables. Connect and CWU are committed toworking together to ensure that BT’s senior management are held to account for management style and behaviour in ourworkplaces. Our members are committed to the success of BT in these difficult economic circumstances; BT must committo eradicating unacceptable management practices. Connect and CWU are pressing BT to make that commitment.

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Two Organisers AppointedThe CWU is proud to announce the appointment of two new Organisers, Fionnuala NíBhrógáin from eircom and Gerard O’Rourke from An Post. Their appointment is awelcome addition to the existing resources dedicated to Organising and is an important firststep in executing the organising strategy that was ratified by the National Executive inSeptember 2008. The appointment of these two Organisers represents the conclusion ofan extensive internal recruitment campaign that generated considerable interest from withinour own rank and file. It is with no small measure of pride that the Union can offer twoof its own activists the chance to bring their energy, enthusiasm and skills to bear on whatis a very tough and challenging position.

The appointment of two Organisers to Head Office is recognition of the fact that organising is becoming increasinglyimportant to securing the future viability and influence of the CWU in the long term. However, the appointment of Organiserson its own will not ensure the continued growth of the Union as this is the responsibility of every existing member, activist,and representative. This is reflected in the fact that the Union has developed its own internal Organising training modulethat is now part and parcel of ongoing training for all of our activists.

In the current economic climate there is more reason than ever for people working in the Communications Industry to bea member of the CWU and I would call upon all of our members to be vigilant to recruitment and organising opportunitiesthat might exist in your locality. As an Organising Union that is recognised as “the Communications Union” it is critical toour continued success that we do not lose sight of the fact that Organising is the responsibility of every member.

Performance Management concerned in BTThe CWU has received a considerable number of queries in relation to BT Ireland’s “Managing Performance Policy” whichrelies on the use of Performance Improvement Plans (PIP). Members have reported to the Union that PIPs (informal andformal) are not being properly applied and in circumstances where this process can lead to disciplinary action, up to andincluding dismissal, this is a very serious issue which all members should be aware of. Whilst the CWU has no issue withBT Ireland taking appropriate steps to ensure that staff meet the standards expected of them in their job, it is critical that anyperformance issues are addressed in a fair, open and transparent way in line with agreed procedures.

Given that PIPs can ultimately lead to disciplinary action, the Union has advised its members in BT Ireland to ensure thatthey do not attend a PIP meeting without Union representation. Numerous examples have been brought to the attention ofthe CWU which clearly underlines that the “Managing Performance Policy” is not being adhered to correctly. This hasresulted in considerable frustration and stress for those members who are being asked to participate in a PIP. The Union hasadvised anyone involved in this process to familiarise themselves with the Managing Performance Policy and not to agreeto any targets or objectives in a PIP that they are not comfortable with. The CWU’s concern with the inappropriate use ofPIPs is not confined to Ireland. The UK Union Connect has raised a number of concerns about possible abuses of thePerformance Management system in light of the Company’s intention to reduce head count and wants to ensure that thesystem is used only to improve performance and that it will be applied in accordance with BT’s values.

The Union has asked its members in BT to remain vigilant on this issue and to come forward with any questions they havein relation to this particular policy.

12 Month Pay Freeze sought in American AirlinesAs the CWU prepared for its annual round of pay talks with Management within American Airlines, the Union was invitedto attend a presentation which outlined the current financial and business challenges that the Company is dealing with.Reflecting the realities of the current global downturn, the Management described a number of issues which were and arehaving an adverse effect on the Company’s ability to meet its revenue targets. Most, if not all, of the key indicators are ona downward trend with the net result that the Company is facing into a very challenging year ahead.

Despite engaging in a transformation programme in conjunction with the CWU and its members in AA that has helpedimprove efficiency, the Dublin operation faces the same challenges as the rest of the business. As a result of this, theManagement have approached the CWU seeking a twelve month pay freeze which the business sees as critical to theCompany’s ability to ride out the current economic crisis. In setting out its position, American Airlines advised the Unionthat Management as well as non-Management would be subject to the same pay freeze and that this would apply to its globaloperations.

The Union has agreed to consider the situation carefully and discussions will continue over the coming weeks.

Ian McArdleHead of Organising and

Regulatory Affairs, CWU.

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Education UpdateThe continued aim of the CWU is to provide its activistswith the skills and knowledge in order to represent membersto the best of their abilities. This is done through theprovision of quality and timely training courses. As part ofthis training programme, the Union has identified a numberof training courses to be provided to the activists in the newbranches. The latest training session took place on the 28thJanuary 2009 and it covered the subject of organising andplanning an Annual General Meeting. The training coursewas aimed towards our private sector branches and wasattended by a cross section of members from those Branches.Training was provided by Pat Kenny, Education Committee,Carol Scheffer, National Officer, Ray Lawlor, NEC and IanMcArdle, Organising Officer.

The following members attended:

Tony Flood BT Billy Tyrell BTBrian Harney O2Dermot Staunton O2Marie Dante O2Brian O Neill O2Nasroun Ben Malek American AirlinesVanessa Vileroot American Airlines

Pictured L-R: Ian McArdle, Marie Dante, Carol Scheffer, Billy Tyrell,Nasroun Ben Malek, Tony Flood, Dermot Staunton, Vanessa Vileroot,

Brian O’Neill, Ray Lawlor, Brian Harney & Pat Kenny.

2009 Training ProgrammeThe following training courses have been approved by the Education Committee:

The venues for the Branch Committee Training courses have yet to be finalised. The Education Committee will be arrangingfurther Training Courses in the autumn and will advise the individuals and Branches accordingly.

It is imperative that all those in elected positions in the Union are fully trained to carry out their role. In that regard allmembers elected to Branch positions or who are still serving on their branches must complete a CWU training coursedesigned for their position in the Branch .

COURSE DATE VENUEBranch Secretary Stage 1 11th to 15th May 2009 Union HQ

Chairpersons Course 28th to 30th April 2009 Union HQ

Treasurers Course 9th to 10th June 2009 Union HQ

Branch Officer 19th to 20th May 2009 Union HQ

Branch Committee 8th to 9th May 2009 Limerick

Branch Committee 12th to 13th June 2009 South East

Branch Committee 22nd to 23rd May 2009 Athlone

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This year, the ICTU Women’s seminar was held in theWellington Park Hotel in Belfast for two days, March 6th -7th 2009. The theme of the conference was “The Case forGender Equality in a Recession”, which highlighted theeffect that the recession had on women in the workplace andin broader society.

The conference was held on the approach to InternationalWomen’s Day and wasattended by over 130 femaleTrade Unionists from acrossIreland both North & South.The CWU was represented atthe seminar by Susan Casey,NEC, Carol Scheffer,National Officer and ImeldaWall, Office Manager. Theconference was jointlychaired by Clare Tracey of theINO and Taryn Trainor ofUNITE with a welcome to alldelegates from the BelfastTrades Council. Several speakers addressed the issue of theimpact of the recession on women workers and the need toincrease our efforts towards gender equality. These speakersincluded Peter Bunting, ICTU General Secretary, PatriciaMcKeown, ICTU President, Carol Baxter from the EqualityAuthority, and Marian Harkin, MEP. This was indeed animpressive line up of speakers and gave the attendees somefood for thought on the difficulties that women mayencounter during these recessionary times.

The Real Impact of theRecession on Working WomenPatricia McKeown’s presentation highlighted that globallythe real gender pay gap is considerably higher than reportedin that men earn on average 22% more than women. Thisstatistic was provided by the ITUC Gender Wage GapReport, 2009. Her presentation also highlighted that the realvictims of the recession may be agency workers and part-time staff who tend to be women. It is important to notenonetheless that part-time staff has the right to equal

treatment with comparable full-time staff and that thisprotection must be utilized at times of redundancy. Thepresentation did outline however that Trade Unionmembership and the inclusion of women in collectiveagreements had a positive impact on the gender pay gap.Reference was made to the Global Campaign, “DecentWork, Decent Life for Women”, the four pillars of the

campaign being standard andrights, employment creation,social protection and socialdialogue. A TUC report presented at theconference stated that in theearlier parts of the recession, joblosses were in sectors with agreater concentration of maleworkers such as in constructionand manufacturing, whereas nowareas with a higher concentrationof female workers such asbusiness services and retail are

now being affected and while it is too early to know if recenttrends will be sustained there is a growing fear that women’sjobs could be at a greater risk than in the last recession.

The first day ended with an open debate from the floorwith the panel of speakers. There was also the concernexpressed that employers may cut back on flexible workarrangements during times of recession and that generally itis women who would be affected by such a cutback.

The second day of the conference took on a more globaltheme with Nancy Cora Aguiar, a youth leader from Cuba,giving an emotional speech on working conditions in hercountry. Two speakers then advised on the “Ethical PestCampaign”, which reminds people to shop ethically and toconsider the working conditions of those involved in thesupply chain. The seminar then ended and it was generallyaccepted that more needed to be done in order to supportwomen facing redundancy and women who have been madeunemployed. Overall the conference was successful increating a broader awareness of the issues facing womenduring the current recession and the working and livingconditions of women on a more global scale, which must bea concern for all Trade Union activists.

ICTU Women’s Seminar –“The Case for Gender Equality in a Recession”

Carol Scheffer, National Officer, CWU

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Equality Update

Women at Work Skillnet Host Successful Award Ceremony

Mary O’ Rourke T.D. and several participants spoke at theWomen at Work Skillnet award ceremony on the 3rd Decin IBOA house. The event was attended by the trainingparticipants, Union Officials, General Secretaries, trainingcompanies and other relevant bodies and its purpose was tocongratulate and present participants with certificates forcompleting their courses.

The Skillnet is being led by five Trade Unions, Mandate,IBOA, CWU, INO and Impact. Our aim is to up-skillwomen so as to optimise their full potential in their workinglives. This aim will be met by giving participants anopportunity to enhance their skills through professionaltraining and development courses.

Our target group is predominantly women workers acrossa wide range of employments including retail staff, privatesector nurses, employees in the communications sector,financial services staff and Trade Union employees. Ourtraining needs analysis has identified a mix of both personaleffectiveness and FETAC accredited vocational skillstraining as an appropriate response for the target group.

Since July 2008 we have undertaken programmes in:

• Basic computers • Personal Development• English Language • Team Building• Diversity • Train the Trainers• Leadership • Positive Attitude• Image Matters

We are very pleased at having exceeded our trainingtargets for 2008 with over 200 women taking part in ourcourses. Since July 2008, this has amounted to 460 training

days, which is a significant achievement.Our strength as a Skillnet is our ability to reach and

encourage working women from different backgrounds toundertake training, which meets a range of developmentneeds. The networking between the five Unions has alsoproven to be very advantageous to the project.

On the night, Marian Geoghegan, IBOA opened theevent and welcomed all the participants. We then heard fromwomen who had taken part in the training so that they couldrelay what the training has meant to them in their workinglives. Women from all five Unions spoke about the coursesthey attended.

We first heard from two Mandate members, namelyMargaret White, who completed the Computer Trainingand Yun Wu, from China who completed the Englishlanguage course. Next Marian Mooney spoke on behalf ofthe CWU. Marian completed the Personal Developmentcourse and the Computer Course. Catherine Hopkins fromthe INO followed suit. Catherine completed the PersonalDevelopment course and the Image Matters course. Finally,Impact member Svetlana Snytkova, from Poland addressedthe group. Svetlana completed the English language course.All the participants thanked the Unions and their trainers forthe opportunity to partake in the training.

We then heard from Niamh Desmond of Skillnets, whocongratulated everyone involved, deeming this Skillnet tobe very successful. Mary O’Rourke, TD, then addressedthe group. She congratulated all the participants and themanagement team on a job well done. She commented onthe enthusiasm from the floor and commended the womenfor committing to the training. This was then followed by apresentation of certificates by Mrs O’Rorke to the attendees.

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Equality UpdateThe event closed with the Project Manager, Alacoque

McMenamin making a presentation to Mrs O’Rourke. Shethanked her for her support and for attending the event. Theattendees then retired to the “Bankers Club” for some wellearned refreshments.

CWU is well represented onthe nightThe CWU was very well represented on the night. Asignificant number of women attended from the Postal andTelecommunications Sector. In particular the Dublin No 3Branch had representatives present with a significant numberof women receiving certificates for Computer Literacycourses. Overall it was deemed to be a very successful eventwith other networking events are planned for the future.

The Women at Work Skillnet is funded by member

companies and the Training Networks Programme, aninitiative of Skillnets Ltd. funded from the National TrainingFund through the Department of Enterprise, Trade andEmployment.

How to Get InvolvedAs referenced the target group is women workers. CWUMembers are strongly encouraged to participate and tocontact their Branch Representative directly in order to applyfor courses. Courses are very much in demand so earlyapplications are essential. For further information pleasevisit: www.womenatworkskillnets.ie or contact:info@womenatworkskillnets.ie . This will give a full listingof upcoming courses.

Should Branch Secretaries have any queries on theWomen at Work Skillnet, they are requested to contact CarolScheffer directly at Union Head Office.

The CWU Group,pictured with

the General Secretary atthe Presentation Night,

where participantsreceived their

Certificates.

Marian Mooney,Dublin Postal

Drivers makes aspeech about the

training on thenight.

22

Disability in the Workplace – What every Member needs to Know

Carol Scheffer, National Officer, CWU

Equality Update

The CWU has long been a supporter of the rights of people with disabilities in the workplace and in broader society. As partof that process we strive to ensure that our membership has an awareness of disability issues and how these issues apply inthe workplace. Under employment equality legislation, discrimination is prohibited under nine distinct grounds, disabilitybeing one of these grounds. Therefore the Act provides considerable protection for those with disabilities against direct andindirect discrimination and victimisation. However it is important the members are aware of the definition of disabilitybefore the legislation can be applied.

Disability in SocietyThe definition of disability is very broad and in many cases is not apparent in society as a whole. Disability is defined in theDisability Act 2005 as follows: “disability, in relation to a person, means a substantial restriction in the capacity of the personto carry on a profession, business or occupation in the State or to participate in social or cultural life in the state by reasonof an enduring physical, sensory, mental health or intellectual impairment”. Therefore the Disability Act, 2005 establishesa statutory basis for access to public services and actions to support access to public buildings.

Disability in the WorkplaceIn the workplace, disability is defined in the Employment Equality Acts 1998 and 2004 in the following terms:

• the total or partial absence of a person’s bodily or mental functions, including the absence of a part of a person’sbody;

• the presence in the body of organisms causing or likely to cause chronic disease or illness;

• the malfunction, malformation or disfigurement of a part of a person’s body;

• a condition or malfunction which results in the person learning differently from a person without the conditionor malfunction,

or;

• a condition, illness or disease which affects a person’s thought processes, perception of reality, emotions orjudgement which results in disturbed behaviour;

• and shall be taken to include a disability which presently exists, or which previously existed but no longer exists,or which may exist in the future or which is imputed to a person.”

It is clear therefore from the above definition that disability covers not only those with a physical disability but also, chronicillnesses, mental illnesses, addictions etc. It is also important to be aware that the same disability can impact people indifferent ways and while some may need interventions in the workplace, others do not or do not need the intervention to thesame degree. Therefore when becoming aware of disabilities in the workplace or in society it is clear that the “one size fitsall” approach does not apply.

Why is Disability so important in the Workplace?From the National Disability Survey, NDS, (October 2008), the CSO now estimates the prevalence of disability in Irelandto be approximately a fifth of the population. While employment is vital to economic independence, a large number areunemployed. It is therefore imperative that measures are in place to employ people with disabilities and provide assistanceto those who acquire a disability during the course of their employment.

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Equality Update

What employers are obliged to doEmployers are obliged to ensure that they provide reasonable accommodation for those with disabilities who are goingthrough the recruitment process or who are in employment. Reasonable accommodation generally refers to adapting theemployer’s place of business to the disability concerned. This may include the adaptation of premises and equipment, patternsof working time, distribution of tasks or the provision of training. However it does not include any treatment, facility or aidthat the person might ordinarily or reasonably provide for him/herself. Overall reasonable accommodation refers to toolsprovided by the employer to enable employees with disabilities do their jobs in the same manner as the employer providesthe means for all employees to accomplish their jobs, such as the provision of computers, safety gear, mobile phones, flexibleleave arrangements etc.

What employers are NOT obliged to doEmployers are not obliged to provide reasonable accommodation whereby its provision would be of a disproportionateburden to the employer. The “reasonableness” of the accommodation and the disproportionate burden may refer to the costsof the adaptation of premises, and the financial resources of the employer. However, in many cases the accommodation oradjustment is of a nominal cost and can be very simple to introduce. When providing reasonable accommodation, consultationwith the individual is vital and employers should fully consult with the individual before, during and after the accommodationhas been provided.

Activities of the Union around DisabilityDisability is a basic Trade Union issue and is a practical concern to all. The Union has included a module on disabilityawareness as part of our overall training programme and we welcome and encourage the participation of people withdisabilities on the relevant training courses. The Union has also actively recruited several activists to complete the ICTUDisability Champions course, which to date is proving to be very successful.

Sources of InformationIn drafting this article, the Union sourced information from the Disability Champions Programme and the Workway project.Workway is “an IBEC/ICTU initiative that aimed to promote the employment of people with disabilities. The project hasproduced a wide range of practical resources for use by employers, Trade Union representatives, people with disabilities andtheir co-workers. These included a website, directories of service providers, wallcharts, case studies on DVD, newsletters,a policy document, an employment preparation guideline, a training template and these guidelines”. Please see thisinformation on www.workway.ie

The Union also recommends that membersinterested in disability issues visit the website of theNational Disability Authority. www.nda.ie . TheNDA describes themselves as “the lead state agencyon disability issues, providing independent expertadvice to Government on policy and practice”.

Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes onlyand does not serve as advice or a legal interpretation of

any of the references Acts.

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Out ofcrisis, fearand angercomes aplan

Workers outside Leinster Houselast month: there is anger thoseresponsible for the banking crisishave not been made accountable,and at the unfairness that economicadjustment is being required fromthose who did not cause thecrisis. Photograph: Eric Luke

OPINION: Amid the mayhemand disillusion, Ictu’s socialsolidarity plan is the onlyformulation of an efficient wayforward, writes DAVID BEGG .

ON SEPTEMBER 22nd, 2008,Lehman Brothers collapsed and withit fell the superstructure of the oldworld order. The liberal era usheredin with the deregulation of globalcapital markets in the 1970s is nowover. There will be no return tobusiness as usual, however long orshort this recession may be. Whatwill replace the old order remainsunclear.

This global economic crisis iscompounded in Ireland by the factthat we are facing five separate sub-

crises running concurrently: abanking crisis, a fiscal crisis, aneconomic crisis, a social crisis and areputational crisis. The latter is thedirect result of the actions of seniorbanking personnel, whose conducthas been well-documented.

The combination of thesecircumstances, and the inadequacy ofthe official response has generatedboth fear and anger in the population.

Fear arises from uncertainty aboutthe future, about security ofemployment, pensions and thepossibility of home repossessions.Anger arises because thoseresponsible for the banking crisishave not been made accountable.There is anger too at the unfairnesswhich imposes the burden ofeconomic adjustment on those whohad nothing to do with causing thecrisis and who are often least able tobear it.

It is a rather ironic feature of thepublic discourse on this subject thatthose who are now most vocal inproposing solutions were formerlystrong advocates of the “voodooeconomics” that caused the crisis inthe first instance. The principalorthodoxy embraced by this group isthat the solution to our problem liesin a competitive devaluation of wagesacross the economy.

While the levy on public sectorpensions is in part intended to plugthe hole in the public finances causedby the loss of tax from the housingbubble, it is also intended to lead thisdevaluation in wages. The beliefbeing that if the Government leads,the private sector will follow.

It is a co-ordinated strategy, asevidenced by the 10 per cent cut forthe construction sector demanded byformer PD minister Tom Parlon, theactions of the employers’ body Ibecand the arguments for a reduction inthe minimum wage made by Ministerfor Health Mary Harney and Ministerof State for Labour Affairs BillyKelleher.

A competitive devaluation inwages is a proxy for currency

devaluation, to restorecompetitiveness lost throughweakening of sterling and the dollar.If it saved jobs, the Trade Unionmovement would have to consider it.But there are two questions whichproponents of the idea need to answerconvincingly.

The first relates to efficacy. Thedepth of the recession is such that it isdoubtful a devaluation of wagescould increase exports. Germanyengaged in an effective devaluationof wages over 10 years (by acceptingpay increases lower than itsneighbours). Exports increased butdomestic demand plummeted.

Now Germany is losing exportsagain due to the weak globaleconomy – gross domestic product(GDP) fell by 2.1 per cent in the lastquarter of 2008. Given that Germanyexperienced no property bubble, thisdecline can reasonably be associatedwith exports. If Germany’sexperience was to be repeated here, itis conceivable we would fail toincrease exports while also reducingconsumer demand.

The second question relates to thedistributional settlement that wouldhave to accompany a wagedevaluation. Why would workersaccept this if profits, prices, costs andpersonal debt remained untouched?The proponents of this idea need toproduce some convincing answers tothese questions.

In the meantime, Ictu will continueto advocate for its 10-point plan forsocial solidarity. I note that it wasattacked in this newspaper andelsewhere by Cathal O’Loughlin, aformer assistant secretary in theDepartment of Finance and agentleman who holds somedoctrinaire, right-wing views. Heeither misunderstood ormisinterpreted two key points: thefirst is that our campaign is not forthe elimination of the pensions levybut rather for a fairer sharing of theburden of adjustment.

Second, he says that we don’tdeclare our hand on taxes. A cursory

25

glance at our newspaper adswould reveal we do identify thetax reforms we seek. Clearly,O’Loughlin is a believer in the oldadage that if you don’t have ananswer to an argument the best tacticis to set up a straw man.

The 10-point plan for socialsolidarity draws its inspiration fromthe Swedish budget consolidation,achieved after its 1994-1998 bankingcrisis. A critical aspect of theSwedish approach, as documented byone of its advisers, Jens Henriksson,was to put together a package ofmeasures that applied fairly acrosssociety and was well-communicatedto the public.

This is the approach Ictuadvocates: we want to ensure thatpain is shared and the burden ofadjustment is not loaded on thoseleast able to bear it. And weunderstand that there are twoeffective levers to make this happen:cutting expenditure and raisingrevenue, with some easing oil appliedthrough borrowing.

Unfortunately, the Governmentseems obsessed with cuts and hasignored raising revenue.

The time has come to movebeyond fear and anger and towardshope.

Ictu has offered the Government athree-year agreement based on our10-point plan, a “special period” toget us back on our feet and helprestore confidence.

We accept that our plan is neitherperfect nor prescriptive. But hasanyone else got a better idea?

David Begg is general secretary ofthe Irish Congress of Trade Unions.He is also a governor of the IrishTimes Trust, proprietor of The IrishTimes

This article appears in the printedition of the Irish Times

Insurance Cover for Delivery Staffusing Private Vehicles (An Post)An issue that comes up on a regular basis at Annual General Meetings as well asfrom members generally, is the issue of insurance cover and whether Postpersonsare insured when using their private car in the course of a delivery. An Post hasadvised the CWU of the following:

➢ The Company has Commercial Motor Insurance in place➢ This covers employees who use their cars while on delivery➢ The cover applies only where the employee has prior written authorisation

of the Company➢ Where this authorisation has been obtained and a higher insurance premium

is required the extra cost can be recouped from the Company➢ In order to recoup the extra costs the relevant receipts must be produced

CWU YouthCommitteeColleagues there has been a lot of activitysurrounding the Youth Committee of the CWU inthe past few months. While the number of peopleattending meetings needs to be increased it is fairto say that the group we have are in regularattendance proving to be dedicated andresourceful.

Since the last issue of Connect there have beenmeetings in Headquarters and high on the agenda has been ways of gettingmore young people active in the work of the Youth committee, their localbranches and the work of the CWU as a whole. We are putting in place atraining course aimed at encouraging more young people to participate on theirlocal committees and in the CWU.

Recently I attended a seminar hosted by the European Trade UnionConfederation (ETUC ), based on the theme “Young people and Organising“. The core item on the agenda of this seminar was the publication of the resultsof a questionnaire carried out by the ETUC regarding Young workers andUnion membership. This turned out to be a very insightful and informativepiece of work and the results will be passed on to our organising departmentto assist them in their work of growing the Union membership.

The CWU Youth Committee were also highly involved in what turned outto be a huge show of solidarity against the Governments handling of thepresent financial crisis, in the recent demonstration organised by the ICTU.Our members acted as Stewards on the day and we also had members whomarched under the ICTU youth committee banner and members who led theCWU group. Thanks to all who showed their support on the day.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity, in what are uncertain andworrying times for every Irish worker, to encourage all young members of theCWU to get involved in the work of the CWU Youth Committee, their localBranch, and the work of the CWU as a whole. For any information about theYouth committee please don’t hesitate to contact me by mail at keith@cwu.ieor by phone on (01) 8663000.

Keith PollardPresident Uni World Youth Committee

Keith PollardPresident Uni World Youth

Committee

26

Get into print!Anyone wishing to submit articles or photos to appear in the Connect journal,

please, either email to:

imelda@cwu.ie

or post to Imelda Wall

Communications Workers’ Union575 North Circular Road, Dublin 1.

SIGN UP TO CWU WEBSITEUnion Website — www.cwu.ie Have You Signed-up Yet?

The World Wide Web is now the main source for up-to-dateinformation in our society. With the ever increasing availabilityof broadband in Ireland, access to the web, and the ability tointeract electronically with friends, family and business is nowpart of our daily lives and the demand for online informationhas never been greater. The CWU, as “The CommunicationsUnion” in Ireland is committed to ensuring that its memberscan have safe and trouble free access to all of its services andinformation whenever and wherever they choose.

We have a number of websites dedicated to serving the needs ofour members in all sectors of the communications industry.

On our main web site www.cwu.ie members can access: • Latest News and Information • GS Circulars • Services • Forms and Brochures • Workers Rights Legislation • Agreements • Back issues of Connect Magazine

You will also find a wide range of Explanatory Booklets and Frequently Asked Questions which can be downloaded in PDF format.

Much of the information is now available in the public section of the site. However, due to the sensitivity of some of the informationas it relates to specific companies in which we are organised, it is necessary to restrict access exclusively to members.

Therefore all members are encouraged to register with the site to ensure they have full access to all of the informationavailable. To do this just go to www.cwu.ie and click on the “register” button at the bottom of the main menu on the lefthand side of the page. You will be asked to provide the following information: Your name, Union Branch, staff/personnelnumber and a valid email address. You will also be asked to provide a username and password of your choice, which youcan then use to access the members’ area.

From the CWU website you can also access our Equalityand Diversity website, which has a whole host ofinformation with regard to:

• Employment Equality • Maternity, Adoptive, Parental Leave • Bullying and Harassment • Discrimination

27

ForewordThe following was prepared with the assistance of Mr. JoeMaher, former Deputy General Secretary of the CWU whowas a Trustee of the An Post Pension and is currently aTrustee of the eircom Pension funds and hopefully it will givemembers some information in relation to the terminologyused when discussing pensions.

BackgroundPension Act 1990The main purpose of the Pensions Act, 1990 is to establishstandards for occupational pension schemes in a number ofareas and to provide a regulatory framework for the futuresupervision of such schemes. The Act is also designed toimplement the requirements of a European Union Directiveof 1986 that provides for the implementation of the principleof equal treatment in occupational benefit schemes.

The Amendment Act 2002 made a number of changes tothe 1990 Act including introduction of the PensionsOmbudsman and provision for the introduction of a newtype of pension arrangement, the Personal RetirementSavings Account (PRSA).

Objectives of the Act• To provide for the establishment of the Pensions Board• To provide for the compulsory preservation of pension

entitlements of members of occupational pensionschemes who change employment and for thesubsequent revaluation of such entitlements;

• To introduce a minimum funding standard for certainfunded schemes;

• To provide for the disclosure of information to schememembers;

• To clarify the duties and responsibilities of schemetrustees;

• To implement the principle of equal treatment of men andwomen in occupational benefit schemes;

Pension TrusteesTrustees of Pension Schemes have a duty to comply withthe provisions of Section 59 of the Act of 1990. This laysdown the duties of Trustees which are as follows:-

• to ensure, insofar as is reasonable, that the contributionspayable by the employer and members of the scheme,where appropriate, are received;

• to provide for the proper investment of the resources ofthe scheme in accordance with the rules of the scheme;

• where appropriate, to make arrangements for the

payment of the benefits as provided for under the rules ofthe scheme as they become due;

• to ensure that proper membership and financial recordsare kept.

• The Trustees are also required to register a new schemewith the Pensions Board and to provide the Board withsuch information as may be prescribed.

Disclosure of informationto fund membersThe following information should be madeavailable to fund members:

• Annual Report which should contain the trustee’s reportto the members, the annual audited accounts andauditors report and actuary’s statement.

• General information on the conditions of membership ofthe scheme, the calculation of contributions, details of thebenefits and the address to which enquiries can be made.

• Many schemes now provide annual Benefit Statementsto all their members as a matter of course. Thestatements may set out such information as themember’s current entitlements and their rights andoptions in relation to normal retirement, early retirement,leaving the employment, death before retiring and on thepossible winding up of the scheme. The informationshould also relate to the treatment of a spouse andchildren after the death of the member.

The Pensions BoardThe Board was first set up by the Minister of Social Welfareunder the provisions of the 1990 Act. It comprisesrepresentatives of the Unions and employers as well as frompensions professionals (actuaries, accountants, pensionlawyers, etc.) and the relevant Ministers (Finance and Social& Family Affairs). The 2002 Act provides for the addition ofa consumer representative and a pensioner representativeto the Board.

The two Trade Union representatives must include arepresentative of member-trustees and similarly, one of thetwo employer nominees must represent trustees. The Boardhas a term of office of five years. The main functions of theBoard are –• to monitor and supervise the operation of the Pensions

Acts and pension developments generally; • to issue guidelines on the duties and responsibilities of

pension scheme trustees and codes of practice onspecific aspects of their responsibilities;

• to encourage the provision of appropriate training for

PENSIONS

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trustees and to advise the Minister for Social and FamilyAffairs on standards for trustees;

• to advise the Minister on the operation of the PensionsAct and on pension matters generally.

Pensions OmbudsmanThe Pensions Ombudsman investigates and decidescomplaints and disputes involving Occupational Pensionschemes and Personal Retirement Savings Accounts. ThePensions Ombudsman is completely independent andimpartial. The ruling of the Pensions Ombudsman is bindingon all parties subject to the right of appeal to the High Court.The service is free.

DefinitionsDefined Benefit SchemeUnder a defined benefit scheme pension at retirement iscalculated as a percentage of final salary multiplied by thenumber of years of service. The contribution rates made bythe employer vary from time to time depending on theoutcome of actuarial reviews. Employee rates if any aregenerally fixed.

In many Defined Benefit schemes the pension is eitherlinked directly to wage/salary movements, or to cost-of-living increases, so that the members’ standard of living canbe wholly or partly maintained in retirement. Theseschemes, more of the financial ‘risk’ falls on the employer.

Defined Contribution SchemesThis types of scheme involves a set level of contribution bythe employer and the employee. Contributions are investedfor each member and it is normal for investment options tobe provided. The pension amount will be unknown until veryclose to retirement and will depend on the amount ofcontributions, the level of investment return and the cost ofpurchase.

In these schemes, where it is the contribution rather thanthe benefit that is defined, the ‘risk’ falls more on theemployee.

Hybrid SchemesA hybrid pension scheme is one which is neither a fullDefined Benefit nor a full Defined Contribution scheme, buthas some of the characteristics of each. In hybrid schemes,the risk is shared between the employer and employees. Asa result, hybrid schemes may be of interest where a DefinedContribution scheme is not considered suitable and aDefined Benefit scheme is not felt to be a feasible oraffordable alternative.

In considering different pension scheme designs, animportant issue for employers and trustees is how the newdesign will be effected by the funding standard and how thescheme will be shown in the employers annual accountsunder the FRS17 rules.

The funding standard and FRS17 rules can be complex andeach scheme must get professional advice. The descriptionof the different types of hybrid pension scheme designincludes, in each case an outline of the likely treatmentunder the funding standard and FRS17.

PRSAsA PRSA is an investment vehicle used for long-termretirement provision by employees, self employed,homemakers, carers, unemployed, or any other category ofperson. It is a contract between an individual and anauthorised PRSA provider in the form of an investmentaccount. There are two types – a standard PRSA and a nonstandard PRSA.

An employer is obliged to provide mandatory access toat least one Standard PRSA where the employer does notoperate an occupational pension scheme; or the employeroperates an occupational pension scheme for retirement ofthe employees but the eligibility for membership of thescheme for retirement benefits does not cover all employeese.g. employees have to wait more than six months fromjoining the Company to be included in the scheme forretirement benefits or scheme members are provided withdeath in service benefits only.

Approved Retirement Funds (ARFs)An Approved Retirement Fund (ARF) is a personalretirement fund where you can keep your money invested asa lump sum after retirement. You can draw down from itregularly to give yourself an income, on which you payincome tax. Any money left in the fund after your death canbe left to your next of kin.

An ARF invests in various assets such as shares, propertyand cash so the growth of an ARF fund depends on theperformance of the assets it is invested in. ARFs aredesigned to grow in value but your original investment isnot guaranteed. ARFs are also subject to yearlymanagement charges which can be taken from the fund andreduce the value

FRS 17Financial Reporting Standard 17 (FRS 17) is an accountingstandard which demands that Companies show theirpension liabilities in their annual accounts. The pensionschemes liabilities are valued on a prescribed actuarial basisand then compared with the market value of the schemesassets. The resulting surplus or deficit is then added to thebalance sheet.

Additional Voluntary Contributions(AVCs)In addition to any compulsory contributions whichemployees make additional voluntary contributions may bemade by employees. AVCs are used to improve the benefitsof members, over and above those provided by the schemerules, but within Revenue limits.

AVCs can be used, within the limits imposed by the

29

Revenue Commissioners, to:-

• Increase basic pension or provide benefits based on non-pensionable pay.

• Increase tax free lump sum, if possible. • Provide or increase dependants’ provisions on death in

retirement. • Provide or increase cost of living provision on all benefits. • Increase death in service provision. • Provide additional security for you and/or your

dependants if you retire early.

Advantages of AVCs• Full and immediate relief from income tax, and from PRSI

on contributions deducted at source. • The fund in which the contributions are invested does not

attract tax. • AVCs give the member a facility to have some control

over benefit levels, by choosing the pace of additionalsaving for retirement. The “mix” of benefits at the time ofretirement (personal pension, dependants’ provisions,cost-of-living increases, etc.) can be adjusted to suitindividual circumstances.

• Present legislation allows for the AVC fund to be paid asan additional tax-free lump sum on death.

Disadvantages of AVCs• Contributions are locked in and may emerge only as

benefits on death, retirement or leaving service and thescope for cash refunds of contributions is extremelylimited.

• Unlike life assurance policies, a voluntary contributionfund may not be assigned, charged or borrowed againstand it is therefore outside the employee’s effective controluntil it emerges as benefits.

• AVCs are not short term savings. While it is possible fora member to stop contributing, no refund of contributionsis possible, except in the limited circumstance of leavingemployment before completing two years as a memberof the scheme.

• If a refund of contribution is taken on leaving service, thiswould usually exclude the possibility of any other benefitfrom the company pension scheme.

Retirement Annuity Contract (RACs)A Retirement Annuity Contract “RAC” is the formal namefor what is normally called a personal pension. An RAC is aparticular type of insurance contract approved by theRevenue. An RAC is a defined contribution pension plan.The value of the ultimate benefits payable from the contractdepends on the level of contributions paid, the investmentreturn achieved and the cost of buying the benefits.

Integrated PensionsAn integrated scheme is one where the pension payable, orthe design of the benefit promise made, takes into accountthe Old Age Contributory Pension (or other similarcontributory benefits) payable by the State.

An integrated scheme looks at the Old Age ContributoryPension as part of the total pension package promised toemployees on retirement. One reason for this is that bothemployers and employees make substantial socialinsurance (PRSI) contributions and these, in turn, entitlescheme members to substantial Social Welfare benefits andthis normally forms part of an employee’s pension.

The most common method of operating an integratedpension scheme is by “salary offset”. This means that theemployer will regard the Social Welfare benefit as takingcare of pension rights in relation to a particular part of salary.Since this part of the member’s salary is being “pensioned”by the Social Welfare pension it is deducted from themember’s actual salary, to arrive at a figure for pensionablesalary. The occupational (company) pension scheme thenprovides a pension based on the pensionable salary figure.The two parts added together (ie the occupational(company) pension and the Social Welfare pension) thengive the intended pension, based on the full salary.

Questions & AnswersWhat Happens When A Worker Leaves TheEmployment?

The pension rights of members who leave before the normalretirement age must be preserved. Prior to the 2002 Act tobe eligible for a preserved pension a member must havehad at least 5 years reckonable service under the schemebut this has now being reduced to 2 years.

For the purpose of the Acts, employment will not havebeen terminated if the absence is temporary or where theworker returns to the employment within one month with adifferent employer who is already participating in, or decidesto continue, the same scheme. The trustees of a schememay decide a period of a different duration.

What Happens If The Member Dies BeforeThe Preserved Benefit Is Payable?

The rules of a scheme can provide for a proportion of thebenefit to be paid to spouse and other dependents.

Can The Preserved Benefit Be Transferred ToA Scheme In A Different Employment?

Yes. Under the 1990 Act, members leaving the schemebefore retiring, i.e. taking up employment in a differentcompany may opt to transfer the payment to anotherscheme they are joining in the new company or to anapproved insurance policy or contract.

The Act of 2002 provides some additional transferoptions: to unfunded public sector schemes; to PRSAs,subject to Revenue conditions and to pension arrangementsoutside of the State, subject to regulations. While the Actprovides for these possibilities, the actual right available tomembers will depend on the rules of the scheme.

OPINION: Government policy must focus on developingthe service exports and advanced manufacturing sectors.

IN HIS analysis of Ireland’s current dire economicproblems (Government must detail real plan to take us out ofcrisis – Opinion and Analysis, January 12th), John Fitzgeraldof the Economic and Social Research Institute suggests thatIreland has two options for enhancing its competitivenessrelative to our trading partners – a pay freeze or a reductionin nominal wages.

There is, of course, a third option, which is to increaseproductivity in Ireland’s export sectors relative to ourcompetitors.

Placing the emphasis on pay reductions as a key to exportcompetitiveness, which is the standard formula among Irisheconomists, is wrong-headed for three reasons.

Firstly, a policy of pursuing competitiveness throughwage reductions inevitably means low living standards.Those who advocate such a policy never explain why themost competitive economies in the world are the ones withthe highest pay levels and living standards. This is becausetheir high productivity more than compensates for their highwage costs. This is the road Ireland must pursue.

Secondly, even if Ireland were to attempt a policy ofcompeting through lower wages, it simply wouldn’t work.The recent decline in Ireland’s industrial exports has beenmainly concentrated in the electronics sector.

This is largely due to the emergence of China as a majorlow-cost producer in this sector. China’s share of worldexports of office and telecommunications equipmentdoubled to 23 per cent in the five years up to 2007.

There is no way Ireland can compete with Chinese wagerates (or east European rates, for that matter) – it is time tomove on.

Thirdly, modest wage reductions of the kind proposed byJohn Fitzgerald would have little impact on the cost structureof export industries, simply because wages are not asubstantial proportion of this cost structure in the first place.

According to Forfás data, payroll costs accounted for just11 per cent of the total costs of foreign manufacturing firms(which produce over 90 per cent of industrial exports) in2007.

The reduction of five per cent in nominal wage costsproposed by Fitzgerald, which he suggests would “greatlybenefit” firms in the export sector, would in fact only reducetheir total costs by about half of one per cent.

Nor would a general reduction in costs elsewhere in theeconomy matter much to the export sector, since foreignmanufacturing firms only source 16 per cent of theirrequirements of materials and services within Ireland.

In any case, the commonly-held idea that Ireland hasexperienced a general loss of export competitiveness acrossthe board does not stand up to scrutiny.

In manufacturing, export performance has varied

considerably across sectors, with some doing poorly(electronics), some just about holding their own(pharmaceuticals) and some doing reasonably well (food andbeverages, perfumes and toiletries, and photographic andoptical goods). This suggests that export performance is amatter of more than general wage costs.

Overall, productivity rose faster than wages in Irishindustry over the last five years. Ireland’s main problem onthe export front, apart from the emergence of China inelectronics, has been the rise in value of the euro, whichIreland cannot control.

However, even this has not stifled the spectacular growthof Irish service exports, which are frequently overlooked inanalyses of Ireland’s Trade competitiveness.

Service exports (financial services, software,administration, research and development) have grown morethan fivefold over the last decade and now account for 45per cent of total exports.

Ireland’s share of world exports of services (other thantransport and tourism) has risen from two per cent in 2003to almost five per cent in 2007 – a phenomenal proportionfor a country of Ireland’s size. This is a labour-intensivesector in which wage costs clearly have not restricted exportgrowth.

Ireland’s current economic problems are entirelyattributable to the collapse of the construction bubble anddifficulties in the financial system which are themselvesstrongly linked to this collapse. While the internationalrecession may impact negatively on the export sector,attempts to counteract this through pay cuts are unlikely tohave any effect.

Ireland’s future economic growth will depend on theattraction or internal development of high-productivity,knowledge-based, activities in services and advancedmanufacturing. This has to be the prime focus of governmentpolicy, even through the current crisis.

On July 4th last, The Irish Times published an article byPaul Rellis, general manager of Microsoft Ireland andpresident of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ireland.Accepting that Ireland is, and will remain, a high-costeconomy, Rellis wrote that: “We need to add value fasterthan we add costs . . . faster productivity growth providesthe clearest route to higher living standards in the future –the time is now appropriate to design and implement clearand co-ordinated policies that will quicken productivitygrowth in the years ahead.”

Such lucid advice offers a far superior signpost to whereIreland needs to go than misguided mantras emanating fromthe economics profession.

Proinnsias Breathnach is senior lecturer in economicgeography at NUI Maynooth

© 2009 The Irish Times

High-value export sector is central tofuture growth Proinnsias Breathnach

Wed, Jan 21, 2009

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31

CWU granted a donation of€10,000.00 to the ICTU CubaAppeal

2008 Hurricane Season has caused severe damage in Cuba.The Cuban authorities evacuated more than 2.5 million people,almost a quarter of the population from the dangeroushurricanes. Half a million houses were destroyed, majorfactories, schools, telecommunications, hospitals, governmentbuildings and farms have been severely damaged. Theagriculture production is lost. Cuba needs internationalsolidarity to overcome this crisis. The Executive Council ofCongress has decided to start an All Ireland Trade Unionfundraising to support the Cuban People’s efforts to rebuildtheir country. Cuba needs international solidarity to overcomethis crisis. The four hurricanes that hit Cuba in just threeweeks are the worst natural disasters for this island since 1963.The monies received will be used for reconstructions of homes,schools, and hospital

On behalf of the CWU members paying into the Fundgrateful appreciation was expressed to you all from the ICTUCuba Appeal.

Donation of €10,000.00 wasmade to the Gaza Medical Aid

The Gaza Strip is home to 1.5 million people; it’s about athird of the size of Co Louth and is not part of anyinternationally recognised sovereign state. Because of the on-going conflict in the Region the situation is desperate withhospitals running out of all types of medicine, the economyhas been paralysed, there are severe shortages of consumergoods, electricity is sporadic, water supplies are scarce anda sewage crisis has spread disease.

Congress is working with others in the Trade Unionmovement to fundraise for medical aid for Gaza. ArtistRobert Ballagh as part of his passionate commitment to thejustice of the Palestinian cause has designed this LimitedEdition print (300) to raise much needed funds for medicalaid to Gaza. The CWU has bought the first print making asignificant contribution to securing medical aid for thepeople of Gaza. The cheque was presented to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions by the Finance committee andthe print will now be hung in our Union head office.

Grateful appreciation was expressed to all members contributing to this very worthwhile fund.

CWU Development Fund

Photograph l to r: Monica Hempenstall, FinancialOfficer, Finance Committee Martina O’Connell, RayLawlor (Chairperson) Damien Tuohy, Mick Smith,Ann Casey, (ICTU) Pascal Connolly, Gerry Cuirc,

(Vice President), Charlie Kelly (President).

Donation of€10,210.00 wasmade to theTanzanian Appeal, An Post Thurles

Sponsorship towards an educationprogramme for students to enable them toattend college for a three year term, alsofinancial support for the Tanzania MissionProject run by the Pallottine Fathers inDublin and Thurles for the completion of aChurch in Sasa’s place. This area is calledMwikantsi and it is part of Eastern zone ofGallapo Parish

Deep gratitude was expressed to all theCWU members for their generousdonation.

(See photo on page 33)

32

A donation of €30,000.00 was presented to A-ZChildren’s Charity, UgandaA – Z Children’s Charity have put forward a proposal for the construction of a Paediatric HIV Clinic, whichwill enable thousands of children living below the poverty line access to lifesaving health care and medicationfree-of-charge. The cost of the paediatric centre construction is €304,000.00.

In the first year A-Z will be treating 15,000 children against killer diseases, including malaria, pneumoniaand diarrhoeal-related conditions. In the second year, A-Z will start treating approximately 400 HIV infectedchildren per month, plus 15,000 other children, as per “year one” targets. A-Z Children’s charity intends thisto be a “best practice” centre, one where all children have the right to access a good standard of health care.

Last year the CWU members’ donation of €3000.00 contributed towards the purchase of an ambulance,which enables A-Z Children’s Charity to transport the HIV infected children on their Children’s HIVCommunity Programme to the clinic. Grateful appreciation was again expressed to all the CWU memberscontributing into this Fund.

Left to right: Brian Iredale, Managing Director A-Z Childrens Charity, Uganda, Damien Tuohy, CWU Finance, Sylvia Katete Gavigan, Honorary Consul, Uganda,

Lorna Coleman, Deputy Honorary Consul Uganda,Minister Pat Carey, Government Chief Whip, Minister of State of the Department of the Taoiseach,

Charlie Kelly, President CWU, Monica Hempenstall, Financial Officer,Stephen Fitzpatrick, General Secretary of the CWU.

CWU Development Fund

33

CWU Intellectual Disability Fund

SISTERS OF LA SAGESS SERVICES,CREGG HOUSE, SLIGO

This service opened in 1955 to respond to the urgent andunmet need for a residential accommodation for individualswith an intellectual disability in the West and North West.Cregg House provides respite, day and residential servicesto 230 individuals presenting with a moderate to profoundintellectual disability. The CWU members contribution tothe Fund will help them achieve their mission to provide aperson centred service in a home like environment, to offerchoice and to maximise the ability and independence of eachperson they support. Connecting the integrating with the

Community and providing domestic style housing, representthe hallmark of their service operating

The Daughters of Wisdom have recently vacated anddonated two large spacious bungalows located at thegateway to Cregg as residential homes for service uses.Each bungalow contains six individual bedrooms togetherwith large living, dining and kitchen space. Thesebungalows will provide single bedrooms for 10 serviceusers, 5 in each house without your financial support thiswork not be achievable. It is important to express to allthe CWU Members paying into this Fund the good workthey are doing throughout Ireland for the IntellectualDisability. Well done.

Photograph l to r: Helen Kilfeather (Staff, Sligo) John Quinn (eircom) Mary McCarthy (Unit Manager, Sligo) Mary Kinsella,(Service User, Sligo) Monica Hempenstall(Financial Officer) Breedge Daly, (Service user, Sligo), Sean Finn (Service User, Sligo)

Damien Tuohy, (An Post, Sligo), Ann Teresa Sweeney (Service User, Sligo) Sarah Ferry, (Unit Staff, Sligo), CharlieKelly,(President), Patrick Lee (Financial Controller, Sligo) Brian Conlon (An Post, Sligo) Tony Scallan (Director of Psychology,

Aisling Burke, Speech & Language Therapist, Sligo.

A donation of €40,000.00 was made to this project on behalf ofthe CWU Members.

34

A Donation of €40,000.00 was made tothis Project on behalf of the CWUMembers.

Co Action West CorkCoAction West Cork was formed originally in 1982 by a

group of parents and friends of people with an intellectualdisability who were no longer prepared to accept thesituation whereby their children were required to travel 60miles to Cork for a service, hence the CoAction motto “alocal service for local needs” for many years the servicesprovided by the organization were funded by localfundraising, eventually HSE Funding was accessed and now

CoAction is the HSE designated service provider forintellectual disability services for children and adults in WestCork. There goal is to support service users to develop theirfull range of talents, to achieve maximum independence todevelop and maintain close links with families, friends andcommunity.

An Application was received seeking sponsorship towardstheir Children’s Respite House, Dunmanway in Cork whichprovides weekend respite for children with intellectualdisability. The project will enhance the quality of respiteservices within their community. Deepest expression ofgratitude was expressed to all the CWU memberscontributing into this fund which helps to providefinancial support to these projects for the IntellectualDisability throughout Ireland.

CWU Intellectual DisabilityHousing Fund

Photograph L to R:Irene Kinston,(AssistanceTreasurer DunmanwayBranch), Liz Pastterson,(Secretary, Dunmanway),Fiona Barrett, (An Post,Bandon), Reggie Chambers,(Chairman CoAction, Cork),Gerry Cuirc, (eircom, (VicePresident), MonicaHempenstall, (FinancialOfficer), Mary O’Donovan,(Financial Controller),Morris Walsh, (CEO CoAction, Cork).

Photograph l to r: Michael Harty,Andy Cummins (An Post Thurles)

Phyllis Connolly, Manager ofThurles Postal, Monica

Hempenstall, Financial Officer,Deputy Michael Lowry, P J

Fogarty (An Post Nenagh), PatMcGrath, Father Martin

Maranda and Father Phil Barry.

Dear Colleague,In January 2007, all members were notified by GS Circular of the decision by the National Executive Council that the CWU

Orphans’ Pension Scheme would be an inclusive benefit for members, as opposed to the then standalone scheme, which had to be paidfor as an add-on in respect of each qualifying child.

It was agreed at that time that payments, in the form of a weekly pension of €20.00 in respect of each eligible child, would be madefrom the central fund, in the event of a member’s death. In making that decision, the Executive was conscious of the fact that thefunding of the scheme would have to be closely monitored, with regular insurance actuarial reports. To that end, I requested that allmembers fill in the simple form supplied, in order to ensure that their children were covered in case of their unfortunate death and alsoto ensure adequate funding of the scheme. While most members have co-operated with the Union on this matter, many did not. Inrecent, times a number of members have died without having enrolled their children in the scheme and as a result of their failure to fillin that form, those children were not covered by the Orphans’ Pension Scheme.

At its September meeting, the National Executive Council decided, on an exceptional basis, to include those children on theunderstanding that I would re-advertise the scheme to all branches and that we would carry membership forms in the next UnionConnect magazine. I have attached, for your information, a copy of the form. Further copies of this form are also available to downloadfrom the Union website: www.cwu.ie.

I would urge all members with children of the qualifying age, who have not yet enrolled them in the scheme, to fill in and return theform immediately, as this scheme is one which will be of huge benefit to your family in the event of a your untimely death.

Yours fraternally,

______________________ Steve FitzpatrickGeneral Secretary.

ORPHANS’ PENSIONS SCHEME

C.W.U. ORPHANS’ PENSIONS SCHEMETo the General Secretary, Communications Workers’ Union

Having provided the required details below, I wish to apply for membership of the Communications Workers’ Union – Orphans’ PensionScheme in respect of each of my children named below (being children under the age of 18 years)

I have read and agree to be bound by the “Orphans Pension Scheme Rules”. I also accept that members of the Scheme shall be at the sole discretionof the National Executive Council of the Union as provided for by the “Orphans Pension Scheme Rules”.

FULL NAMES OF CHILD DATE OF BIRTH FULL NAMES OF CHILD DATE OF BIRTH________________________________ _____________________ _______________________________ ___________________

________________________________ _____________________ _______________________________ ___________________

________________________________ _____________________ _______________________________ ___________________

________________________________ _____________________ _______________________________ ___________________

My full name is: __________________________________________________________________(BLOCK CAPITALS)

Home Address: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________(BLOCK CAPITALS)

My email address is: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________(CONFIRMATION OF INCLUSION IN THE SCHEME WILL BE PROVED BY EMAIL)

Contact telephone number: _______________________________________ ___________________________________ __________________________________(MOBILE) (HOME) (WORK)

I am currently employed by _________________________________________ My current place of employment is _____________________________________(NAME OF EMPLOYER/COMPANY) (OFFICE/LOCATION)

My current grade is: __________________________________ My date of birth is ______/_______/_______

I have been with my current employer since _______/_______/_______ My staff/employee number is: ___________________________________________(CAN BE FOUND ON PAYSLIP)

My Union Branch is: _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I have read and agreed to be bound by the Rules of the Scheme

Signed: ________________________________________ Dated: _______/_______/_______

CWU People

36

DUBLIN POSTAL AMALGAMATED BRANCH ANNUAL“MAKE A WISH IRELAND” CHARITY NIGHT

The Dublin Postal Amalgamated Branch’s annual charity night in aid of “Make A Wish Ireland” took place in the Watersidepublic house, Clondalkin, on Friday 21st November 2008 and the magnificent amount of €7,680.59 was raised. Awonderful night was had by all who attended and that was in no small way attributable to the management and staff of theWaterside and also the wonderful entertainment provided on the night by the very popular “Beer Mats”. Thanks must alsogo to those who sponsored prizes for the raffle and items for the auction on the night, such as Robbie Keane, who kindlydonated a signed jersey for the auction and which raised €300 on the night. Also there was the generous donation fromlocal resident Mr. Karl McGrath who donated a Celtic football jersey which was signed by the last triple winning Celticteam to be managed by the late Tommy Burns. This raised a superb €750. Another note of special thanks must also go toIrish professional boxer “BERNARD DUNNE” who kindly gave of his time to attend on the night and signed autographsand took pictures with all who wanted. It must be said that Bernard proved to be a true gentleman. The Branch would alsolike to recognise the wonderful gesture on Bernard’s part of nominating “Make A Wish Ireland” as his chosen charity whenhe appeared on the RTE/National Lottery charity “WinningStreak” on New Years Eve last. Bernard agreed to do this aftertalking with the Officers of the Dublin Postal AmalgamatedBranch on the night of their event. Bernard managed to win thefantastic amount of €23,800. Last but not least thanks to allwho sold sponsorship cards and helped out on the night. Theycan rest assured that their hard work will go a long way tomaking sure that some young child with a serious illness willhave a wish come true!

Pictured L to R: John Halton (Branch Chairperson DPAB), Bernard Dunne (Irish Professional Boxer), Syl Curran(Branch Secretary DPAB), Ernest Hall (Branch Treasurer DPAB).

Pictured Right: Irish Professional Boxer, Bernard Dunneappearing on RTE/National Lottery “Winning Streak” on last

New Years Eve.

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CWU People

The Tralee Senior Telephonist’s would like to pay tributeto Brid O’Riordan who availed of voluntary early retirementrecently. Voluntary Retirement became the order of the daythis past year for Eircom and in particular for OperatorServices where we lost huge numbers. As a result, theCommunication Workers’ Union has lost many outstandingvolunteers in recent years. For us in Tralee we lost a truefriend and colleague and an ambassador for any Union whenBrid decided to exit Eircom recently.

Brid joined the Department of Post and Telegraphs in1980 when Albert Reynolds recruited many into thecommunication industry - it had a waiting list of more than3 years to have a phone installed at that time. She worked inCahirciveen and Killorglin in a manual exchange beforemoving to Tralee in 1984. All the sub-offices at this timewere being automated and staff had no choice but to moveor avail of a package.

Brid became involved in the CWU in 1993 as a committeemember where she served as treasurer, chairperson andBranch Secretary. A post she held for the last seven yearsprior to her departure. She has told us that “Taking over theBranch in 1991 was rather daunting as Partnership, was the

new concept which was being introduced at that timemoving away from the traditional Industrial Relations. Verysoon it became most enjoyable and challenging to work torepresent all the members”.

She felt she had been more than lucky to make acontribution to the Union and stressed that she had“excellent support from my very good friends, and familywho endorsed my commitment, interest and involvement”.In addition to representing members at local level andNational Partnership she played a major part in organisingthe Union National Conferences which were held in Traleeseveral times as well attending conference on 14 occasions.

“It was serious business in the earlier days but there wasa valuable social side to it”, which she says allowedmembers to mingle and debate the issues on board and indoing so she has a treasure store of memories, photographs,

memorabilia and friendships which she values and hopes toretain.

Brid would like to thank all her colleagues and friends inEircom - with sincere thanks in particular to the SeniorTelephonist’s who organised a function recently and made aspecial presentation to her which was most appreciated. Shewould like to extend a special word of thanks to TerryDelany and Ray Lawlor of whom she said, “showed hercourtesy, support, kindness and help through good anddifficult times, along with hammering out the best possibledeals - with Operator Services at the heart of their priorities”.

In concluding the Tralee Senior Telephonist’s would liketo thank Brid sincerely for her friendship and supportthrough the years. We wish her and her husband John manyyears of health and happiness in the future.

A Tribute to Brid O’Riordan from the Tralee Senior Telephonist’s Branch

Terry Delany, Brid O’Riordan and Ray Lawlor.

Presentation made to Brid.

Brid with her colleagues in Wesleyville, Tralee.

38

CWU People

Tom Murphy R.I.P.

An Appreciation

There was great shock and sadness at the news of the sudden death in September of our friend and colleague Tom Murphy.A proud native of Kilnamartyra in the Muskerry Gaeltacht in west Cork and affectionately known to his colleagues as T Cor Big Tom. He died on 27th September 2008.

Tom joined the Post Office (then the Dept Of P&T) as a Postman in February 1970 and served in the Ballincollig area,being the only Postman on Foot /Cycle at the time in the area, as it is now a satellite town with up to 20 delivery Postpersons.In March 1974 he became a Post Office Clerk and served in Waterford, Cobh and eventually returning to Cork in April1976. He worked all the clerical duties in the Sorting Office and G P O and in October 2001 was appointed to the OperationsSection of the Area Office Retail.

Tom was a thorough gentleman and possessed a courteous and an unassuming nature with never a cross word with anyone.He was also noted as a keen and conscientious worker, who took great pride in his work. Even over 35 years after lastdelivering a letter in Ballincollig, he was still known to many as “Tom the Post” and diligent in all aspects of his duties.

Tom always had an interest in Union affairs, rarely missing a meeting and contributed in a constructive manner. At thisyear’s Branch A.G.M. he was elected a committee member and took his responsibilities in this position very seriously. Hewas also to the fore in attending all social functions to mark Retirements, Promotions, Transfers etc, his presence being madeknown by his infectious laugh and good humour. On occasions like these he was always prone to break into a verse of hisfavourite songs - The Kilnamartyra Exile or The Bold Thady Quill, the former fittingly being sung as his remains were carriedfrom Ballincollig church.

Apart from his family, Tom’s other love and passion was the G.A.A. He proudly donned the jersey of both his nativeKilnamartyra and adopted Ballincollig (who provided a Guard of Honour at his funeral) and was a stalwart member of thePost Office Football Team in the late seventies. Having finished his playing career, there was seldom a weekend that Tomwould not have attended a G.A.A. game in either football or hurling. He was also a very committed, enthusiastic fundraiser and organizer for the Ballincollig Club and up to recently representedthe Kilnamartyra Club as delegate to the County Board. A native Irish speaker, he was always happy to converse “ás Gaeilge” with other language enthusiasts.

To his wife Sheila, sons Sean and Donal (a committee member of the Cork Mails Centre Branch), his daughter-in-lawMaria, grandchildren Kate, Daniel and Aoife, his sister Eileen and brother Donal, as well as his extended family and friends,we offer our sincere and heartfelt sympathy.

Tom was one of nature’s true gentlemen!

May he Rest in PeaceAr Dheis Dé Go Raibh A Anam Dilis

Cork Clerks Branch

39

CWU People

Dublin Drivers

DundalkThe Dundalk postal branch wished Sean Cranny avery happy and enjoyable retirement after 27 yearsat a function held in Sextons Bar and Restaurant. Itwas a measure of the man to see one of the biggestturnouts at a retirement part ever held by the DundalkBranch. Dermot Ahern Minister for Justice who is agood friend of Sean’s and his family also attended onthe night. With Sean’s love of DIY and his local gaaclub the Geraldines, where he has been involved overthe last forty years, he should have enough to keephim busy in his retirement.

A function was held in the Teachers Club for the retired colleagues of the Dublin Postal Drivers Branch. Pictured l to r: Tony Grogan (assistant Secretary), Steve Branigan (Chairman) Dermot Owens, Davy Bryan, Denis Daly,

Mick Martin, Maurice Cassidy (Branch Secretary) and Derek Kavanagh (Treasurer).

Top Photo: Pictured l to r: Anthony McCrave(Branch Secretary) Sean Cranny retired postmanCaoimhne O’Callaghan (Branch Chairman).

Photo on left: Pictured l to r: Dermot Ahern(Minister for Justice) Aedamar Cranny (Sean’swife) and Sean Cranny (retired postman)

40

CWU People

Seán Russell from Thurles in Tipperary retired fromthe Post Office in December 2008 after 49 yearsservice. Seán began as a junior post person in the PostOffice in 1959 and worked on the mail car servicebefore being a postman. Seán has been a member ofthe Communications Workers’ Union and served as anofficer on the local Committee as well as attendingmany conferences in the 70s and 80s. His colleaguessay Seán was a devoted Union man and was a greatadvertisement for An Post as an employee

Seán Russell, Postman with49 Years’ Service, Retires

Pictured l to r: Michael Collins (OperationsManager), Seán Russell, Tom Gleeson (BranchManager) and Phyllis Connolly (DSM).

Joe Lacken, eircom Ballina, Retires

Back row l to r: John McGinley, Brendan Coffey, Ian Stewart, Danny Nelis, Pat Molloy, Enda Halloran, Greg McCaffery,.

Front row l to r. Sean Gillespie, Michael Flynn, Joe Lacken,P.J. Reilly TTL, Cathal Costello.

P.J.Reilly team leader presenting JoeLacken Ballina with a gift voucher on

his retirement after 37 years’service with eircom.

Congratulations to Joe Lackin, Ballina, who retired after 37 years’ service with eircom. Joe, who was a member of theNDID team in Sligo, was presented with a gift voucher by team leader, P. J. Reilly. Everyone wishes Joe all the best in the future.

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CWU People

Marie O’Hara

Pictured l to r: Janet McCormack, acting Line Managerat the time) with Marie.

eircom Mullingar

Hi All

As you probably all know now, I won the Prestigious Award forthe Team Leader of the Year, in the Call Centre ManagementAwards.

I just want to say a huge thank you to the Comets, who were myteam at the time I was nominated for this award by MeteorManagement. I would not have achieved this award without thehard work and commitment of the Comets, their excellent call statsand constant high quality of calls. I take my hat off to all of you.

So here’s sending a huge thank you to each of you with a big hugfrom me.

YOUR AWARD WINNING TEAM LEADER!!!!!

Maria O’Donoghue

Message from TeamLeader Winner in Meteor

Marie O’Hara served as Branch Secretary in Mullingar forseven years. During that time she proved to be a most able,hardworking and personable colleague. ThroughPartnership she negotiated many of the EircomRestructuring changes. She was very knowledgeable onall aspects of workers rights and the workings of theC.W.U.

Through her years Marie organised many charitablefunctions and raffles, especially the Neil Melon fundraisingwhich she contributed one of her own works of Art.Indeed without asking she contributed one of her lovelypaintings to the event again this year.

Despite her busy life she was always very approachableand popular with her colleagues and indeed she had almosta light-hearted approach to her position which made her afriend to all. Marie took Voluntary Leave in March 2008and retired from the Communications Workers’ Union.

We wish her good health, happiness and everyenjoyment in her retirement.

42

CWU People

Thomas Hannon, co-opted toLimerick County Council

Labour Party activist and secretary of Limerick clerical and admin branch of the CWUTomas Hannon, has been co-opted to Limerick County Council for the Bruff Electoralarea. He replaced Deirdre Ní Chinneide who resigned for personal reasons.

Tomas, is a life long member of the Labour Party and was director of elections in 2004for Deirdre Nî Chinneide when the Labour Party made history by taking a seat for thefirst time in the Bruff Electoral area. During his time in the Party he has played a centralrole in the electoral careers of the late Jim Kemmy T.D. and Jan O’Sullivan T.D..

Following the boundary revision the party has selected Tomas as their candidate in thenewly named Adare Electoral Area for next June’s Local Elections.

Alan Kent RetiresSubmitted by Anthony McCrave

Alan Kent retired on 6th March last after 27years service with the Post Office. Alan was aPostman based in Carrickmacross and the localCWU Rep who also served on the DundalkBranch Committee up to his retirement.

Pictured receiving the Union Scroll followingthe recent AGM of the Dundalk Branch, L – RJohn Tansey NEC, Alan Kent & AnthonyMcCrave Branch Secretary.

Pictured l to r: Jerry Browne, Hughie O’Connor,Mick Keating and the GS Steve Fitzpatrick.

Retirement function, Cork Mails Centre Branch

A great night was enjoyed by all the members retiringand their families and friends, who attended aretirement function of the Cork Mails Centre branchon 22nd November at the Market Tavern, Cork.

Jerry Browne, who is a past President of theUnion, spoke on behalf of the other retirees and gavea brief speech on how much working in An Post inCork and how being involved in the CWU meant tohim and the others.

It was especially great to have Steve Fitzpatrick,General Secretary, CWU, and Charlie O’Neill inattendance, joining in with the celebration on thenight.

Submitted by John Hickey,Branch Secretary, CMC.

43

Ballinasloe Post Office

CWU People

Back Row l to r: Micheal Gordon, Des Doherty, Oliver Gibbons,Kevin Hyland, Liam Kelly, Tom Cullinane and Kevin Hyland.

Frond Row l to r: Anthony Naughton, Seamus Dilleen, Christy Kelly,Matt Brennan, Micheal Kelly, Pat Dolan and Des Madden.

An Post Ballinasloe branch of the Communication Workers Union and the An Post Social club Ballinasloe held a retirementfunction in the Carlton Shearwater Hotel to honour their colleagues who have retired from Ballinasloe postal district overthe past few years. The thirteen men that retired had given An Post a total of over 400 years service collectively. Their jobspectrum ranged from Postmen to Counter Clerks and an IT consultant. Andrew Naughton was promoted to the Athlone MailCentre and he was also honoured on the Night. Presentations were made to them from the Ballinasloe Branch of theCommunications Workers Union, and the Ballinasloe Branch An Post Social Club. There were presentations also from the

company. Their Union scrolls were presented to themby President of the Communications Workers Union MrCharlie Kelly. M.C on the night was Mr Damien TouhyC.W.U. representative on the National Council.,Damien previously worked in Ballinasloe and was ableto tell many a tale about his former colleagues. A greatsocial evening was had by all, and colleagues past andpresent reminisced about times gone by. Music was bythe Double Deckers.

Anthony Brennan, Ballinasloe, makes apresentation to Charlie Kelly.

44

CWU People

Back Row l to r: Pat Compton, Anthony Brennan, John Tansey N.E.,Damien Tuohy, N.E., Mike Grenham and Noel Frehill.

Front Row l to r: Celcius Sheridan, John Kellegher, A.H.C.P.S., Charlie Kelly (President), Martina Cregg (BranchSecretary, Ballinasloe) and Dolores Kelly (Treasurer, Ballinasloe)

Pictured l to r: Damien Tuohy, N.E., Oliver Gibbons, Dan Spain, Gerry Cummy,Matt Brennan and Tom Buckley (Branch Manager, Ballinasloe).

45

CWU People

Peter, who worked with Eircom Business Systems (EBS) formany years, was given a great send off by the staff at afunction held in his honour at the Boars Head pub Dublin.

To Peter and his family, the CWU join with his many friendsand colleagues in wishing him a long and happy retirement.

Peter Donohoe, Dublin No 1 Branch, Retires

Tony Higgins, (Dublin No 1 Branch Committee)congratulates Peter Donohoe on the occasion of hisretirement from eircom after forty two years’ service.

Fionnuala Ní Bhrógáin has worked in the Repair Service Centre in eircom sincejoining the company in 1999 at the age of 19. She became a member of the CWUon joining eircom. Fionnuala became the Shop Steward for the Dublin RepairService in 2005 and was elected to the Committee of the Dublin no. 1 Branch soonafter. As a member of the Repair Service Partnership Group she has enjoyed theopportunity to represent members in an area which has to adapt constantly to newdevelopments in technology. Fionnuala is greatly looking forward to helping theCWU achieve its goals in the future.

Gerard (Rocky) O’Rourke joins the CWU from An Post where he has workedas a clerk at the G. P. O. Dublin for the past twenty years. He has been anactive member of the Dublin Postal Clerks Branch and has served on thecommittee for a number of years at various levels including Branch Treasurerand Branch Secretary. Gerard has recently successfully completed theCertificate in Trade Union studies at the National College of Ireland andcurrently he is attending UCD where he is studying business. Gerard is marriedand has two children and one grandchild.

Fionnuala Ní Bhrógáinjoins the CWU

Gerard (Rocky) O’Rourkejoins the CWU

46

47

The Irish Blood Transfusion Service is

calling on CWU members to consider

becoming platelet donors. Most people are

familiar with the process of blood donation,

but less are aware of platelet donation.

Platelets are small cells, present in the blood

of all healthy people and essential for

clotting. Over 20,000 units of platelets are

required for Irish hospitals every year. It is

estimated that 90% of platelets are needed

for patients undergoing treatment for

cancer, but they may also be needed for

patients who have been in serious accidents,

had major surgeries and sometimes for new

born babies.

At present, just over 2,000 people donate

platelets in Ireland and the Irish Blood

Transfusion Service is looking for more

people to come forward. Demand for

platelets has grown dramatically over the

past few years, mainly due to the increased

incidence of cancer in Ireland.

Platelet donation is a different type of

donation to a regular blood donation. The

donor gives their platelets, but keeps their

red cells and their plasma. As platelets

renew themselves within a few days, it is

possible for donors to give platelets once

every four weeks. Outside the body,

platelets have a shelf-life of just 5-7 days,

so maintaining a constant supply is of the

utmost importance. Donations take place at

the National Blood Centre in the grounds of

St. James’s Hospital, Dublin 8 and the

Munster Regional Transfusion Centre in the

grounds of St. Finbarr’s Hospital, Cork.

Several CWU members are already

platelet donors, including Dunshaughlin

based An-Post worker, Joe Lawless. Joe has

been donating blood and platelets for seven

years now and has given 23 units. He is a

regular platelet donor at the National Blood

Centre in Dublin. Joe is a special donor,

donating for new born babies who are born

with a low platelet count.

“Demand for platelets in Ireland has

increased by 50% over the past five years

largely because of the number of new

cancer cases, and this demand is going to

increase steadily” says Dr.William Murphy,

National Medical Director of the Irish

Blood Transfusion Service. “Committed

donors like Joe Lawless are essential to the

supply of blood and platelets in Ireland.”

A regular donor relaxing during his platelet donation at the National Blood Centre, St. James’s Hospital, Dublin 8.

For those who are interested in becoming platelet donors, more information can be found by visitingwww.giveblood.ie/platelets, by texting “platelet” to 53377, or by calling 01 432 2833.

Call for CWU Members to considerbecoming Platelet Donors

4848

A DARKNESS MORE THAN NIGHT by Michael ConnollyPublished by Orion Price €7.53 approx from The Book Depository(www.bookdepository.co.uk).

A brilliant, powerful, suspenseful thriller that brings togetherMichael Connolly’s two fictional heroesTerry McCaleb, a retired FBI profiler, is asked to leave his quiet life to review a Murder Case Fileas a favour to the local Sheriff’s detective, that he might have some insights into the case, as thedetectives are baffled. Terry has his own problems. He has a new donor heart and a young familyto care for and a boat business to run. But the case intrigues him. He contacts his old friend inLos Angeles, Detective Harry Bosch to find out about the victim. An owl has been found at thescene of the crime. Terry finds out that the Owl is a signature symbol used by the artist Boschand has the religious connotation to God and Judgement. So what is the connection betweenthe Artist Bosch, his friend Detective Bosch, the plastic owl that witnessed the crime and thesadistic murderer?

BLOOD ON THE STREETS by Paul O’BrienPublished by Orion Books (Price €14.95 Dunnes Stores)

Educational & Insightful!This story takes place over three days and centres on the battle of Mount Street Bridge whichhappened during the 1916 Rising.

History comes to life within the pages of this book. Eoin MacNeill, the Leader of the Volunteers, decided not to go ahead with the Rebellion, but

a secret Military Council comprising of Patrick Pearse, Eamonn Ceannt and Joseph Plunkett andlater on Tom Clarke, Sean McDermott and James Connolly decided to go ahead with the uprisingwithout informing MacNeill. MacNeill decided to cancel all manoeuvres for Easter Sunday oncehe heard the ship; the “Aud” was scuttled by its Captain after being intercepted by the British

Navy. The “Aud” had been carrying arms and ammunition from Germany for the Volunteers.MacNeill sent around orders to cancel by word of mouth and by placing a notice in the Sunday Independent to that effect.

But all over the country different groups turned up to their assigned locations to await orders. But when the orders didn’tcome a lot left their posts. However, the battle of Mount Street Bridge went ahead.

The beginning of the story focuses on Michael Malone, a 28 yr old carpenter by Trade who set up position at 25Northumberland Road, an ordinary man facing insurmountable odds but willing to fight for what he believed in.

I was amazed at how the volunteers held back trained British soldiers and even machine gun fire. There is a fantastic scenewere the machine gun is literally tearing the house apart and playing a tune on the piano.

I could not get over the courage of the two nurses from Patrick Duns Hospital who went ahead of the others and ran intothe firing line to help the wounded.

It was interesting to see things from the other side, how young the British Soldiers were and the fact that they thought theywere on their way to France and they ended up fighting in Dublin.

After a single day’s fighting 4 British Officers were dead, 14 wounded and 216 killed and wounded of other ranks.After the rebellion ninety seven were condemned to death but only sixteen were executed (14 in Kilmainham, 1 in Cork

and 1 in London). The 14 Executions that took place at Kilmainham involved over 200 soldiers. An interesting fact Ilearned was that in the firing squad no one knew whether their gun was loaded with blanks or ball so they could not be sureif they shot the prisoner.

There is a lot of information that is told simply in this slim volume. I am sorry this book was not available to read whenI was at school; I think it would have made me understand better the foundation stone of the Ireland we enjoy today.

I look forward to Paul O’Brien’s next book.

Books reviewed by Adrienne Power

49

NO TIME FOR GOODBYE – Linwood BarclayPublished by Orion, Price €7.31 Book Depository (including postage)

Intriguing! Gripping! Packed full of suspense! A teenage girl has an argument with her parents and when she wakes up the next morning herwhole family have disappeared! Where did they go? Over 30 years later Cynthia has a familyof her own and is taking part in a crime programme to try and get to the bottom of what happenedall those years ago! The TV Programme reopens the mystery and puts Cynthia and her familyin danger as the mystery begins to unfold as to what happened to her parents and brother.

Found this hard to put down once you have begun reading.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA by Stephanie MeyerIncludes 4 Books: Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking DawnPublished by Little Brown Book GroupPrice: First 3 books €7.99 Easons and last book €11.99

Read The Twilight Saga and see what all the fuss isabout!

The Phenomenon of the moment! Fantasy with an edge! A masterful series! Wellwritten, atmospheric. A cross-over novel, it appeals to all ages. It deserves therecognition it’s getting. Cover artwork very good too!Set in the modern world of today, well to be exact, it is set in Washington State, USA. Itis “our world” populated by Supernatural beings as well as humans. Full of secrecy andpassion and danger. The story of 17 year old Bella who leaves Arizona to live in the

small town of Forks. She is awkward, self conscious and prone to accidents. In her High School there are a family thatkeep too themselves, the beautiful cold and aloof Cullen’s!

In the first book when Edward Cullen saves Bella from a terrible accident using seemingly impossible speed and strength,Bella starts to realise what he is. And so begins the love story between Bella the human and Edward the Vampire.

Characters amazingly written. I think Bella, Edward, and Jake will be equally as well known and loved in 20 years timeas Han Solo, Princess Leia and Luke Skywalker!

There is a scene in the third book where the main character Bella Swan is trying to arrange magnets in order on her fridge,but two of the magnets won’t line up, they won’t attract, they detract each other. I think it is a terrific allusion on teen life.It is the time when you start noticing that not everything adds up, you stop seeing the black and white and start seeing thegrey in-between and your horizons start expanding.

TO THE LIMITS OF ENDURANCE by Jack Harte and Sandra Mara

In the 1930s, Jack Harte like many young boys growing up in the Dublin tenements, dreamtof an adventurous life overseas. After a first attempt to run away to join the British armyfailed, he successfully stowed away on the mail boat to Britain. Lying about his age, he wasaccepted into the army and was posted to the strategically important island of Malta. Hartewas later transferred to Palestine, where he was selected for the elite Special Board Service(forerunner of the SAS). Captured by the Germans, he writes movingly of the extremehardships that he and his comrades experienced as prisoners of war. Harte’s remarkable, and often blackly funny, coming-of-age memoir and war story serves toremind us of the important role played by Irish(wo)men in the 2nd World War.After his wartime service, Jack Harte returned to Ireland, where he worked for Guinnessand became involved in the Trade Union movement. He was elected to the Seanad in 1973 and served therefor nearly twenty years. Jack remains involved in Guinness and Labour Party Organisations today.

50

INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY HOUSING FUNDForm of Authorisation for Deduction of Subscriptions from Pay

TO:The ……………………………………................................................…………. (insert Company name)Payroll Section

Until further notice and commencing on ………....................……....……… , please deduct €0.13 from my weekly or €0.26 from myfortnightly basic pay (delete whichever is inappropriate) in respect of my contribution under the Scheme of deductions ofSubscriptions to Staff Associations and pay that amount to the Communications Workers’ Union, 575 North Circular Road, Dublin 1. (Pleasenote that eircom Scale A members are already paying 13 cent per week into this fund).

I recognise that these deductions, being made solely as a measure of convenience to me, may be terminated at any time.

I also recognise that the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that the deductions have, in fact, been made from my pay rests with myself,and that beyond making remittances on foot of sums deducted for credit to the account of my Union, the Company accepts noresponsibility of any kind in this matter.

Signature: ...........................................................

NAME: ................................................................(BLOCK LETTERS PLEASE)

GRADE...............................................................

OFFICE ................................................................

DATE: ..................................................................

LEAVE BLANK FOR OFFICE USE ONLY

STAFF NUMBER

Note: When completed, this form should be returned to the General Secretary, Communications Workers’ Union, 575 North Circular Road, Dublin 1.

Note: When completed, this form should be returned to the General Secretary, Communications Workers’ Union, 575 North Circular Road, Dublin 1.

Note: When completed, this form should be returned to the General Secretary, Communications Workers’ Union, 575 North Circular Road, Dublin 1.

CWU DEVELOPMENT (AFRICAN) FUND PROJECTSForm of Authorisation for Deduction of Subscriptions from Pay

TO:The ……………………………………................................................…………. (insert Company name)Payroll Section

For a period of one year and commencing on ………....................……....……… , please deduct €1.27 from my weekly or €2.54 frommy fortnightly basic pay (delete whichever is inappropriate) in respect of my contribution to the African Fund of The CommunicationsWorkers’ Union, 575 North Circular Road, Dublin 1.

I recognise that these deductions, being made solely as a measure of convenience to me, may be terminated at any time.

I also recognise that the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that the deductions have, in fact, been made from my pay rests with myself,and that beyond making remittances on foot of sums deducted for credit to the account of my Union, the Company accepts noresponsibility of any kind in this matter.

Signature: ...........................................................

NAME: ................................................................(BLOCK LETTERS PLEASE)

GRADE...............................................................

OFFICE ................................................................

DATE: ..................................................................

LEAVE BLANK FOR OFFICE USE ONLY

STAFF NUMBER

HOSPICE FUNDForm of Authorisation for Deduction of Subscriptions from Pay

TO:The ……………………………………................................................…………. (insert Company name)Payroll Section

Until further notice and commencing on ………....................…….……, please deduct

from my weekly basic pay in respect of my contribution under the Scheme of deductions of Subscriptions to Staff Associations and paythat amount to the Communications Workers’ Union, 575 North Circular Road, Dublin 1.

I recognise that these deductions, being made solely as a measure of convenience to me, may be terminated at any time.

I also recognise that the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that the deductions have, in fact, been made from my pay rests with myself, andthat beyond making remittances on foot of sums deducted for credit to the account of my Union, the Company accepts no responsibility ofany kind in this matter.

Signature: ...........................................................

NAME: ................................................................(BLOCK LETTERS PLEASE)

GRADE...............................................................

OFFICE ................................................................

DATE: ..................................................................

LEAVE BLANK FOR OFFICE USE ONLY

STAFF NUMBER

€0.13c €0.50c €1 €5 €10(PLEASE TICK THE AMOUNT OF YOUR CHOICE)

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