Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I wish to raise the continued use of non-established industrial grade employment contracts within the OPW. It does not just affect the OPW but I am specifically concerned with reports I have heard about worker morale in the OPW. These contracts continue to be used despite the fact that the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform has acknowledged that it is an issue. SIPTU has repeatedly raised its concerns at the national joint industrial council for State employees about the use of non-established grades. Skilled guides are being denied access to opportunities and the current contract system limits their access to lifetime personal and financial improvements.

The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the OPW are fully aware that employees have attended interviews and achieved competitive markings at those interviews but are then denied panel placement purely on the basis of their non-established status. It is not good enough for the Department to hide behind the archaic Civil Service Regulation Act 1956 because it is within the gift of the Minister as a legislator to fix the legal basis and is also within the Department's gift to engage constructively with the trade unions and workers they represent to get this resolved. SIPTU has requested that the matter be referred to the WRC. My understanding is that the Department requested a two-month delay to that process in May 2021 yet it continued to advertise and recruit more guides on non-established contracts as recently as September 2021.

The inability to access opportunities and the failure of the OPW to provide upskilling while simultaneously refusing to remunerate those who choose to upskill themselves are having a significant impact on the morale of those working in the OPW. One employee with whom I spoke told me of the hostile environment in which they currently work while another spoke of how, despite their contract stating that their place of work was in one site, they are now being instructed to make a daily 80-km round trip to another site with no financial compensation - something we all understand would be very difficult but which is simply impossible now given the current cost of living crisis.

The failure to properly recognise the skills of these workers and to offer lifelong progression in their careers is also leading to employee attrition. Perhaps this is the aim because according to other reports coming out of the OPW, senior OPW figures have told guides that they would love to replace them with machines. Perhaps this is because machines would then free up even more money to carry out some of the vanity projects that have been undertaken, including ones that have flouted laws such as those requiring a legally mandated bat disturbance licence at Emo Court.

Why is the OPW continuing to advertise and hire people under non-established employee contracts despite the Department acknowledging that there are issues with these contracts? Why are guides being relocated against their wishes to sites more than 40 km from their contracted place of work and why are successful interviewees being prevented from taking up posts in other public service jobs?

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I am taking this Commencement matter on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy O'Donovan. The OPW employs approximately 2,500 staff across a wide range of craft, technical, administrative and management disciplines, and all OPW staff have essential roles to play that bring great value to those availing of OPW services across a number of work programmes. The OPW manages in excess of 2,400 properties on behalf of the State through the estate management programme, which includes some of Ireland's most significant heritage properties, monuments, gardens and arboretums.

Under its flood risk management brief, the OPW continues to co-ordinate Ireland's whole-of-government approach to managing Ireland's flood risk to reduce to the greatest extent possible the impact of flooding on families and businesses in communities known to be at risk from flooding. This work is largely carried out by State industrial employees and makes a significant contribution to the health, enjoyment and well-being of the public, particularly in recent times. The Minister of State, Deputy O'Donovan, pays tribute to these staff, who maintained a full service for client Departments and the general public during the pandemic.Parks and heritage sites provided much-needed relief from the restrictions, and essential building and engineering services allowed Departments and local authorities to continue to deliver critical functions throughout the pandemic.

At peak season, the OPW employs approximately 1,400 full-time and seasonal State industrial staff in drainage, maintenance, visitor services, flood relief, hydrometrics, national historic properties, national monuments and the President's household staff. State industrial staff are employed in essential roles at many sites including the Houses of the Oireachtas, Farmleigh House, the Phoenix Park and Dublin Castle. They work various shifts. Some shifts are five days over seven and some sites are manned over 24 hours.

The non-established grade employment contracts, which the Senator mentioned, in the OPW are technically classified as industrial employees and are recruited to the OPW in a non-established capacity. I understand that they enjoy the same terms and conditions as industrial employees in other areas of the civil service. A non-established State employee or industrial employee is a person employed in a whole-time capacity by a Department or office who is not an established civil servant.

Non-established State employees are not covered by the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956. State industrial employees are regarded as those grades designated under section 23(3) of the Industrial Relations Act 1990. State industrial employees are excluded from the Civil Service conciliation and arbitration scheme but are covered by the range of general employment laws and have access to the Workplace Relations Commission and the Labour Court on matters of pay and conditions.

The OPW continues to follow Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, DPER, guidelines on the employment classification of non-established industrial staff. The policy is a matter for the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform and is not something the OPW has any authority to change. This also applies to all other public service bodies with State industrial staff. The Senator mentioned a delay with regard to DPER. This is a matter for DPER. The OPW does not have authority to change it. I suggest it may be worthwhile for the Senator to correspond directly with DPER or the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform who may be able to give her further detail on her queries.

Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The issue is that while the response has outlined the contractual arrangements for the non-established offices, the reality is that DPER has acknowledged this is an issue. It is in the minutes of the national joint industrial council for State employees. It has acknowledged it is a complex issue and said it would engage with the WRC conciliatory process. We need progress on that because we have people who have 30 years' experience working as guides within the OPW and have no path of progression within the job they have chosen to do. Many of them have taken on masters courses in heritage and history for which they are not compensated. There is no facility for training within the OPW other than first aid courses. Some employees are multilingual. They have taken on extra languages at their own expense and yet there is no acknowledgement of this in their pay and conditions. I encourage DPER to engage with the unions since it has acknowledged there are issues but we need to resolve the issues. Acknowledging them is just the first step.

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I assure the Senator that the OPW strives to value its staff equally, regardless of their grade or recruitment methodology, primarily through ongoing communication and engagement. While there are many different grades and classifications of employees, the OPW will continue to work hard to minimise the impact of the historical differences in terms and conditions that apply between various employment categories through engagement mechanisms such as the partnership and joint industrial council in order that the organisation works as one team, one OPW. However, I note what the Senator has said around morale within the OPW's work environment around lifelong progression, senior OPW staff in terms of technology and all of those matters. I will bring these comments back to the Minister.