Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The position is that under the terms of the Defence (Amendment) Act 1990 the Defence Forces representative associations are prohibited from being associated with or affiliated to any trade unions, or any other body without the consent of the Minister. Accordingly, the representative association PDFORRA cannot be affiliated to ICTU at present. A similar arrangement applies to the Garda Síochána representative associations. The basis for the prohibition is that it would be inappropriate to apply the provisions of the Industrial Relations Act 1990 to members of the Defence Forces. The taking of any form of industrial action is felt to be irreconcilable with military service. As has been done in the past, the Defence Forces may be called on to contribute to maintaining vital services in times of industrial action. The potential for serious difficulties could arise in these circumstances if the associations were associated with or affiliated to ICTU.

A number of mechanisms have been put in place through the Defence Forces conciliation and arbitration scheme to compensate for the prohibition on affiliation to ICTU. These provide the representative associations with structures and processes which enable them to make representations and negotiate on behalf of their members.

In addition, a framework exists that facilitates the associations engaging with the official side in talks parallel to those taking place between ICTU and the official side at national level. This parallel process was successfully operated in respect of the most recent rounds of discussions, facilitated by the Labour Relations Commission on an extension to the Public Service Agreement 2010–14, which concluded last month. I am satisfied with the present arrangements in place and have no plans to make any changes.

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