Electricians' strike may do more damage than bank crisis - FF

SEANAD REPORT:THE ELECTRICIANS' strike had the potential to do more damage to this country than what the banking situation was causing, Larry Butler (FF) warned.

It would put thousands of people out of employment in the construction industry. There was a need for ministerial intervention to get the Construction Industry Federation (CIF ) and the TEEU into talks to ensure that some sort of sensible settlement was devised.

Mr Butler said he was appalled to hear Jack O’Connor say he would support an all-out strike.

“This is absolutely appalling. How much more damage could anyone do to the country than by having an all-out strike and close down every business in this country? Inability to pay was part of the national wage agreement. The contractors had already stated that they were not able to pay these workers.”

Referring to “this disastrous strike”, David Norris (Ind) said it seemed as if there had been an outbreak of idiocy on both sides and a lack of understanding of the serious situation this nation faced.

Frances Fitzgerald, Fine Gael leader in the House, said the strike could have a dreadful impact on jobs and on the economy if it continued. She urged the Government to appoint a mediator to work with both sides to prevent a continuation of this work stoppage.

Alex White (Lab) said workers were entitled to expect that when an agreement was reached it would actually be observed.

“That’s the difficulty we are in. The tried and tested means of determining pay in this sector had been jettisoned by the employers. It was not good enough for the head of the CIF to describe people who were exercising their rights as lunatics. Given the economic catastrophe confronting the country, he might want to look closer to home to find where the lunatics were.”

Eugene Regan (FG) said it was for the parties to sort this out and not for the Government to intervene. “In my experience, where the Government has intervened in industrial relations it has been at a price to the taxpayer and to the competitiveness of the economy”.