Trade union calls for company director restrictions

Employers should be restricted from being directors of companies for up to five years if they fail to meet their obligations to their employees, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) has urged.

Ictu genreral secretary Patricia King urged the Government to amend existing legislation to provide for such a move at a meeting on Monday with the Minister for Jobs and Enterprise Richard Bruton.

Ms King had sought the meeting to discuss the controversy surrounding the recent closure of Clerys department store in Dublin.

She said it was an appalling situation and Clerys’ workers had been treated outrageously.

Ms King said the Ictu delegation had told the Minister that current legislation setting out that employers must enter into a 30-day consultation period before redundancies should be actually implemented.

She said where such a process was not followed, the redundancies should be void.

However, Ms King also argued that the Government should amend company law so that any employer or someone working on behalf of an employer who failed to comply with the procedures could be removed as directors for at least five years.

"If directors of cpompanies, employers or their agents behave in the manner that this outfit did concerning Clerys, then we should have the right to apply to the High Court to have them removed as directors for at least five years."

Ms King said Mr Bruton told the Ictu delegation he was considering what could be done. She said he pointed out that Minister of State Ged Nash was already preparing a report on the Clerys issue for the Cabinet.

Ms King said trade unions would continue to press for urgent action.

The Clerys situation is expected to be one of the main talking points at the biennial conference of Ictu which commences in Ennis, Co Clare on Tuesday.

Tánaiste Joan Burton is to address the conference on Wednesday and is expected to support a new charter proposed by Ictu outlining enhanced rights for workers.

The charter has five points covering pay, hours of work, representation rights and respect in the workplace. It says that in order to earn a living income from full-time work – taking account of taxes and welfare – it would be necessary for a single adult to earn at least €11.45 per hour.

Ictu believes this living-wage rate could be introduced over a three-year period.

The charter also says there should be an end to low and zero-hour contracts for workers as well as precarious work practices.

The trade union movement aims to set out the response of political parties to the new document at its forthcoming conference in Ennis in July. It also plans to publish the responses of individuals on its website in advance of the general election.