October 2025 

Pat Maloney

ICTU and Israel

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions [ICTU] has called on the Government to end trade with Israel.

Congress has said that workers in Ireland should not be placed in“unconscionable situations” of facilitating trade with Israel or handling Israeli goods while attacks on Gaza continue.  Government must step up its response by ending trade with Israel.

Congress has written to Taoiseach Micheál Martin and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer urging their respective Governments to do more, and to introduce real sanctions on Israel.

ICTU said that it and other Unions are reviewing procurement and pension investments to ensure non-complicity in Israel’s actions.

“While Ireland has made diplomatic efforts within the EU, the failure to implement real sanctions means some trade union members fear being complicit in Israel’s violence”, said ICTU General Secretary Owen Reidy.

“We would not be surprised if some of these develop into flashpoints of conscientious objection by some workers…”

“As a movement, we are clear:  we will not be found wanting in protecting our members where an employer seeks to discipline or dismiss a worker in such circumstances”, Mr. Reidy said. (15.9.2025)

Unemployment

The numbers out of work rose to 4.9% in July.   Almost 9,000 people lost their jobs.  This is the highest rate for over three years, in what economists said could be the first indication that business sentiment is softening due to the continuing uncertainty over tariffs.  The young are most at risk as tariffs and uncertainty take a toll on growth (Irish Independent, 7.8.2025). 

There were 143,100 people registered unemployed last month, compared with 134,500 in June.

Hours Down

While the State’s labour market has recovered strongly from the effects of the pandemic, adding about 440,000 new jobs since 2019, the report found the number of hours people are working per week has dropped from 33.5 to 31.2.

This trend was—in part—linked to an increased incidence of remote or hybrid working arrangements, which now apply to 35% of workers, compared to 21% before the pandemic:  “indicating a lasting shift in working patterns”, the report said.

The drop in hours worked was found to be greater among employees with flexible arrangements, compared with those who are office or site-based (Irish Times,14.8.2025).

      EU/US Trade

SIPTU representatives have called for clarity on the details of the EU/US trade deal announced yesterday and immediate action from the State that will priorities protecting jobs in the sectors that are worse impacted (28.7.2025).

SIPTU Manufacturing Divisional Organiser, Neil McGowan, said: 

“The statements and media reports on the agreement between the US and EU on a new tariff regime governing trade between the two economic blocks, leaves a lot yet to be clarified.  It is vital that we get this clarity urgently because every day of uncertainty impacts investment decisions by business which directly effects the tens of thousands of our members employed in sectors which rely heavily on exporting into the US.

“Workers in Ireland including those in the food, drink, medical devices and pharmaceutical sectors have been very concerned since President Trump embarked on his protectionist economic policy.  While the erratic decision-making of the US President is not something that we can have any bearing on, the Irish Government can, and must, work to alleviate its outcomes.

“When the US President made clear earlier this year that he intended to embark on a protectionist trade policy by instigating specific tariff regimes on imports, SIPTU called for the Government to begin planning for how to protect jobs in Ireland.   This must be done in an urgent fashion and involve key stakeholders including the trade union movement. 

“Among the options, which SIPTU believes should be considered, are wage subsidy programmes similar to those introduced during the Covid pandemic for companies that experience a considerable fall in turnover due to a reliance on the US market.  Consideration must be given to modelling this scheme on that operated in Germany where there are subsidies for shortened working weeks.   These measures will aim to protect production, jobs and the economy in the short-term and must include social conditionality, concerning issues including collective bargaining and workers’ rights.”

He added: 

“At the same time as these short-term measures are applied, work and resources must be turned to assisting indigenous companies in diversifying their markets and products to adapt to the changed global trade environment in the long-term” (SIPTU, 28.7.2025)

ICTU has urged the Government to drop proposals for a €1bn cut in the VAT rate for the hospitality sector, calling it “economic vandalism”(23.7.2025).

Following the publication of the Summer Economic Statement yesterday, Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe said that the cost of the VAT cut would be almost €1bn, using the majority of the €1.5bn identified for tax measures.

“The proposal to cut the VAT rate at a time of huge economic uncertainty flies in the face of all available evidence, and would amount to nothing less than economic vandalism”, said General Secretary of ICTU Owen Reidy.

“Hospitality is a sector rife with low paid employment and poor conditions, and all evidence suggests that the reduction in VAT will not be passed on to consumers or staff, but pocketed by employers”, Mr. Reidy said.

SIPTU said private sector workers have been short-changed by a Government which has broken commitments on pensions, increased sick days and measures to offset the cost of living crisis while announcing tax breaks for business.

“On 18th July, on national radio, the Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, stated that there was a prior commitment to the hospitality sector on a VAT reduction,” said SIPTU Deputy General Secretary Greg Ennis.

“However, what about the Government’s prior commitments to workers with regard to increasing statutory occupational sick pay from five to seven days in 2025, progression towards a living wage in 2026, which has now been shelved until at least 2029, and the abolition of sub-minimum wages for young workers?”, Mr. Ennis asked.

“LAST YEAR, Ms. Antoinette Cunningham, from Limerick, announced her retirement after 33 years with An Garda Síochána and Association of Garda Sergeants & Inspectors (A.G.I.S.), and has since moved on to become an Employer Relations Executive with the Irish Business and Employers Confederation (IBEC).

She made Irish policing history in 2018 when she became the first full-time female official in a Garda representative organisation and the first woman to serve at every executive level of the association” (Irish Independent, 18.7.2025).

BRENDAN OGLE:   Appeal of  Workplace Relations CommissionDecision 2024. 

Extracts July, 2025:

“Mr. Pollock said there was a fundamental change to the Union’s policy when Sharon Graham was elected Generral Secretary of the Union (UNITE) around this time, and it became a more industrial than a political movement.

“The whole emphasis was put on members, members driven, results coming from the shop floor,” Mr. Pollock said.

“He added that the whole union “changed overnight” to that model.  He said some regions had political officers, and some did not.  He said there would have been changes to some employees’ allocation of work at this time.

“Mr. Pollock said when Mr. Ogle was appointed, former General Secretary Len McCluskey made it very clear that he was to get the role, and it was Mr. McCluskey’s decision to create the role.

“That created a lot of disharmony within the region”, he added.

Earlier, Gail Cartmail, a retired senior official based in the UK… said UNITE leader Ms Graham was very industrial-related and different from Mr. McCluskey, who diverted time and resources into transforming the Labour Party.   Ms Cartmail said Ms Graham wanted to transform the Union so “the political tail no longer wagged the industrial dog”  (Irish Independent,17.7.2025)