Labhrás Ó Murchú (Fianna Fail)

In normal circumstances, as a life-long trade unionist, I would vigorously defend the trade union movement and support its right to strike. In the case of the current electricians' strike, I accept they have the right to do that, but there is no other way of describing the present strike except as economic lunacy because the number of people who are being directly affected by this will run into thousands. Many of them will have no connection whatever with the electricians' union. These people will be put on protective notice, jobs will be in danger and business will be lost. In addition, there is a possibility that we will have an all-out strike. It seems as if the reality of the economic crisis has still not hit home in this case. I am not taking the blame off employers. If there is a possibility of arriving at some solution by bringing both sides together, so be it, but that is not the issue. It is that a group again resorted to strike thus endangering the economic advancements which were being made to try to correct the present crisis. Describing this in some kind of a softly, softly way only prolongs the absence of the full knowledge of where we are at the moment. I see that the media are responding along the lines I am stating. I do not believe there will be any public sympathy for what is happening at the moment. I support the idea of mediation in this case, but the trade union movement was wrong to strike and endanger so many jobs at this time.