N.E.C.I. Warning Strike Action Will Cause Massive Job Losses

national | worker & community struggles and protests | press release

Monday June 23, 2008 18:49

by Dave Butler - NECI

An Injunction has been granted by the High Court to prevent the Labour Court from varying the Registered Employment Agreement that is in force in the Electrical Contracting Industry until such time as its validity is proven. NECI claims the agreement is not valid as employer parties to the agreement represent only an estimated 10% of the employers in the industry. The proposed increase will cost each employer employing an electrician for 39 hour week, €71,062.24 per year .This includes Pension, PAYE/PRSI,Holiday pay. This cost does not include safety training, safety equipment or safety clothing being provided.

The Technical Engineering and Electrical Union (T.E.E.U.) are to begin balloting for strike its approx 8,000 members which work in the electrical contracting industry. There are an estimated 28,000 electricians working in this industry.

This Cost is simply unrealistic in today’s economic climate.

N.E.C.I. says this proposed increase will lead to massive job losses within the industry and the winding up of many long established electrical contracting firms. Realistically we should be talking about a pay freeze and trying to maintain employment in our industry. These rates are simply unobtainable outside the big cities and also unobtainable to contractors working in the domestic side of the industry.

N.E.C.I. want a grading system to be implemented, whereby top performing experienced electricians can be rewarded much more than the existing REA allows. Today based on the current REA, top performing experienced electricians only receive 75 cent per hour more than the newly qualified inexperienced ones. The old pre ‘Celtic tiger’ grading system works on a time served basis and not on quality, experience and qualifications.

It is the opinion of N.E.C.I. that this REA is flawed from its inception, as the parties who negotiated and signed this REA were not ‘substantially representative of such workers and employers’

Section 27 (3) section C of the Industrial Relations Act, 1946 states clearly:-

‘(c) that the parties to the agreement are substantially representative of such workers and employers,’

Pursuant to Section 29 (2)of the Agreement it is provided that:-

‘(2) The Court may cancel the registration of an employment agreement if satisfied that there has been such substantial change in the circumstances of the trade or business to which it relates since the registration of the agreement that it is undesirable to maintain registration’.

The entire industry has gone through radical change since 1990, when this REA was first registered. Preliminary results of N.E.C.I.’s national survey clearly show that 90% of the industry do not know, or have never been educated correctly on their legal requirements and responsibilities to their employees under this REA. It is our goal to ensure that a certified educational programme be implemented across the entire industry on a new balanced and fair national Registered Employment Agreement that has been negeoated by all employers and workers in the industry.

Apprentice Ratio Ensuring Excellent Training & Craftsmanship

NECI want to change the Apprentice Ratio to only allow a company to have two apprentices to every qualified electrician employed This will ensure excellent training practices and quality of workmanship for the apprentice. This will also ensure excellent workmanship for the customers. This ratio has not been adhered to or regulated for many years. Many companies now have 20 or 30 apprentices to every one qualified electrician employed and are using Apprentices to keep down costs.

The issue of the throughput of apprentices leaving FAS every year, flooding the industry with poorly trained and expensive to employ electricians, due to the current REA agreement, must be addressed urgently. When qualified these electricians become too expensive to employ and take the only option to work in the industry. They become contractors themselves, take on apprentices and the whole cycle starts again. It is NECIs opinion that the current situation could very quickly lead to very poor and dangerous electrical work being carried out.

These are only some of the many issues that N.E.C.I. are actively working on for its members.

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Comments (5 of 5)

This is a new one for Indymedia

by Michael O'Brien - Socialist Party

Tue Jun 24, 2008 13:05

This is the first time I have seen indymedia being used as a media platform for scabby employers.

To sum up. The electricians are well organsied in the TEEU and the bosses are poorly organised in this sector. This poor organisation may or may not be a contributory factor to the pay deals acheived by the TEEU for their members. So the bosses who have abstained from this process are using the courts to compensate for their weak organisation to date.

Pathetic!

Electrician

by Paraic

Tue Jul 01, 2008 20:20

Do you really believe that some companies have 20 or 30 apprentices to every qualified electrician? Ridiculous ,ive been working in this industry for 14 years and know that these statistics simply are not true.The 5% increase that we are seeking is in line with the current expected rate of inflation ,so in reality at the end of the year we will not be better off financially.Maybe next time i purchase petrol or milk ill explain that i only pay last years prices,im sure it will be fine.

13 years an Electrican

by Paul Kelly (The Cribber)

Fri Jul 18, 2008 20:07

I have been working as an Electrican in Ireland for the last 13 years. I have been on many building sites where there are 20 to 30 apprentices to every qualified electrician. Not alone is this true but the standard and experiance of many young electricians is an absolute discrace. Some of these young electricians have not been trained in all areas of the trade and in my opinion some are only able to bend conduit. These guys can leave a dangerous botched electrical job behind them and are a long way short of being proper tradesmen. This is the reality as I see it and is an issue that has to be faced up to.

Union has got it coming!

by paul white 98

Mon Jul 28, 2008 22:27

Here are a few facts,

Cost price of an electrician under new rates of pay €22.54 by 39 = €897.06
Country money.ie anyone, anywhere out Dublin €176.06
employers pension contribution € 31.11
Cost of electrician per week €1,086.23

That`s before any insurance, transport, tools or materials

These rates are total nonsense, using the cif`s own calculations multiply the above by 1.66

Real cost of electrician €1,803.14 per week

There is nobody in the country who would pay that much for an electrician.

The union by looking for such a rate that only the biggest contractors could possibly afford
is going to run the smaller and mid sized contractors out of business
creating a black market in the industry. It worked great for a while but alas the game is up.
The rea is unlawful, even the union knows that
and just when they thought things couldn`t get any worse, The 0.38c they`ve been stealing of contractors from pension contributions is coming to an end

There is no way a small to mid contractor could sucessfully trade under that agreement

My advice to all sparks, Australia

TEEU Union have ruined our Industry

Fri Aug 01, 2008 03:32

I am of the opinion that the TEEU have ruined our Industry. I have worked for the same company for a long time and I am close to being out of a job at the moment. I would prefer to get out of the bad CWPS pension and save myself 30 euro per week than get a pay rise that puts my boss out of business. I agree with every thing I read on www.neci.ie . Keep up the good work National Electrical Contractors Ireland, Lets hope you can save the day.

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N.E.C.I. Warning Strike Action Will Cause Massive Job Losses

Comments (5 of 5)