Major Trade Union recruitment drive takes place in Ireland this week

Wednesday 26 May 2010

“Many retail workers in Ireland are losing up to €100 per week and the only way to protect their standards of living is to join Mandate Trade Union.”

Mandate Trade Union is organising a major recruitment drive throughout Ireland this week. Brian Forbes, National Coordinator of Organising, Recruitment and Campaigns for Mandate said that many retail workers throughout the country have experienced significant reductions in living standards through deteriorated terms and conditions.

Over the past two years low paid retail workers have experienced:

• Reductions in pay;
• Reductions in hours;
• Redundancies.

A recent Mandate analysis has revealed that a significant number of full time workers in the retail sector have experienced pay reductions of up to €100 as a result of cuts in pay and also a reduction in hours of between 8 – 10 hours per week. According to the union, some of these cuts are unnecessary and it is clear that many profitable companies are using the economic recession as a means to attack long established and hard fought for terms and conditions.

Mandate insists that the only way for retail workers to protect themselves from being exploited by unscrupulous employers in this economic environment is to join a trade union.

Mr Forbes said, “It appears that a lot of non union retail workers are currently being exploited at the moment but many feel that there is nothing they can do about it.

“We have seen a dramatic shift towards part time hours for almost all workers in the sector which is leading to a serious reduction in income and therefore lower living standards for thousands of families throughout the country. This reduction in hours has also lead to a casualisation of the industry which is impacting on the opportunity for maintaining a career in the retail sector.

Mr Forbes added, “Evidence suggests that one of the main reasons people don’t join a trade union is because they are never asked to join one. One of the key objectives of Mandate Membership Week is to ensure that every retail worker in the country is afforded the opportunity to join Mandate in order to improve their own living standards and protect themselves in the workplace.

“Mandate has recently shifted its aims from operating primarily as a servicing union to becoming an organising and campaigning one. As part of this change the members are taking more responsibility for recruitment and organising and as a result, hundreds of members and activists throughout the country are helping to organise events and programmes during Mandate Membership Week,” concluded Mr Forbes.