DELEGATES at the Civil and public Service Union conference passed a vote of no confidence in their general officers and national executive on Saturday. It was the sort of nightmare scenario that would plunge most trade unions into crisis, especially as the CPSU is to enter crucial pay talks today.
But the vote had no visible effect on the delegates, the executive, or the union's general officers. Three hours later the general secretary, Mr John O'Dowd, was given a standing ovation for his services to the union over the past acrimonious decade.
If nothing else, CPSU conferences are never boring. While some unions conduct their business with the measured earnestness of a bureaucratic tortoise, the CPSU prefers the dramatic flourishes of street theatre.
It may be the boring clerical duties, it may be the way left wing groups have targeted this 13,000 strong union of low paid clerical civil servants, or it may be the youthfulness of many of its members, but the CPSU is by far the most militant union in the public service. Last year it had three strikes in An Post alone, and a work to rule throughout the Civil Service, which the leadership was roundly condemned for calling off just because there was a better pay offer put on the table.
The warmth of the standing ovation for Mr O'Dowd on Saturday was partly fuelled by the knowledge that he is taking leave of absence to become an executive director of the new national centre for partnership.
It says something about the gap between leaders and led in the trade union movement that, while the Irish Congress of Trade Unions has nominated Mr O'Dowd for the new centre for partnership, in recognition of his skills as a negotiator and industrial relations analyst, the very concept of partnership came in for unremitting criticism from some more militant conference delegates.
This was especially the case in Telecom Eireann, where the CPSU has about 500 members. When the assistant general secretary, Mr Derek Mullins, told the conference that issues like partnership and employee share option schemes (ESOPs) had to be explored if Telecom was to be made competitive, he was told by an executive committee member, Mr Pat Wayne, that the union would be destroyed if it "bowed to market forces".
Low pay drives much of the members' anger. Their salary scales range from £155 to just over £300 a week. The motion of no confidence arose from the protracted negotiations on a restructuring deal with the Department of Finance.
Last August members narrowly rejected terms negotiated by Mr O'Dowd, which offered increases of between 3 per cent and 22 per cent. On Saturday a Ballina delegate, Ms Mary Mullen, pointed out that the rejected deal had made provision for "a typical", of temporary staff to be recruited. This is contrary to union policy.
It "was nothing short of scandalous to recommend such a deal, that flew so blatantly in the face of union policy," she said. "It was appalling."
The vast majority of delegates agreed, and supported the motion of no confidence. But no resignations were offered and none sought. Indeed, some delegates were clearly unhappy that infighting within the union was partly responsible for the delays in concluding a deal.
The final round of talks begins this week, with submissions to an independent arbitration board. These are not expected to yield significant improvements on the terms rejected almost a year ago.
One hopeful sign is that the CPSU president, Ms Angela Cassidy, in a thoughtful presidential address, called for a new look at how partnership could operate in the Civil Service and semi States.
Ms Cassidy was elected with the support of the most militant and uncompromising opponents of change in the union, and on the basis of her own track record as an activist. If anyone can persuade members to take a more constructive attitude to industrial relations, it is her.
Meanwhile, Mr O'Dowd told the closing session: "It's seven years since I got a standing ovation. It's a nice feeling."