Cowen must not yield to Yes blackmail
New nationwide poll shows referendum on a knife-edge as huge 35 per cent still don’t know
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The Taoiseach is caught between a rock and a hard place. The rock is the Lisbon Treaty; the hard place is the looming recession — which some experts say is already here.
Last week, Mr Cowen gave into pressure from farmers to secure their backing in the vote. Now workers are threatening to withhold their support if the Taoiseach does not agree to their demands. Yesterday, however, Mr Cowen said he simply could not meet those demands.
If Mr Cowen were to give in this time — either now or during national pay talks — it could mean that thousands of jobs may go, mainly in US multi-national companies.
As a result of the Taoiseach’s stand, Siptu, which represents over 200,000 workers in Ireland, has said it cannot recommend a Yes vote. Trade unions represent less than 30 per cent of the workers in the private sector. Yet SIPTU wants the law to be changed so that employers are forced to deal with unions.
It is not just foreign companies who would be outraged: Ryanair, for example, would not appreciate being forced to deal with unions, nor would most employers. An employers’ source said: “It’s an attempted coup by Siptu. What they want — collective bargaining — would cost more jobs than tax harmonisation.
The Taoiseach must not give way to Yes blackmail.” Siptu’s position increases the possibility that the referendum on Thursday may well be defeated. However, a Sunday Independent/Quantum Research telephone poll shows that the outcome of the referendum is still very much in the balance. The poll was conducted among a nationwide sample of 500 people on Thursday night.
The referendum will be decided by the number of people yet to make up their minds which way to vote. Our poll found those intending to vote
Yes stands at 34 per cent: those intending to vote No is at 27 per cent; but the single largest grouping, at 35 per cent, are those who still do not know which way to vote with only four days to go.
The poll also reveals that “workers’ rights” is emerging as the biggest issue concerning those who intend to vote, with 21 per cent saying it will influence their decision. It seems possible now that the issue concerning Siptu — collective bargaining — may dominate the campaign in its final days.
It was easier for Mr Cowen to give in to to the demands of the IFA, who represent 85,000 farm families throughout the country. The IFA wrung a commitment from the Taoiseach to use the Government’s veto to prevent the World Trade Agreement adversely affecting their livelihoods. The economy is heading for crisis, however. Three leading economists have said the country is already in recession.
The Finance Minister, Brian Lenihan told the Sunday Independent this weekend that massive cuts in Government current spending were on the way: the economic situation in the country was now “dangerous”, he said. There is currently grave concern that the collapse in tax revenues could see Ireland breach EU borrowing limits. Mr Lenihan told the Sunday Independent: “Despite the shortfall in tax revenues this year, I still don’t think we will exceed our borrowing requirements.
However, what it does mean is that next year will be very tight and the current account discipline will be very tight next year,” he said.
“It is clear next year we are going to have to tighten, and be very disciplined in, our current expenditure. Simply, the operating costs of Ireland have to be paid for out of current tax revenues.” In this stark environment, the national pay talks will perhaps be the most critical ever. In fact, there is, for the first time in years, no certainty of a successful outcome.
Employers are already seeking a Yes vote in the Lisbon referendum while trade unionists, generally, are concerned about what they see as an “increasingly rightward” and “neo-liberal” direction in European public policy.
The Treaty is balanced by social provisions, including the Charter of Fundamental Rights, with an accompanying endorsement of an entitlement to collective bargaining.
Collective bargaining is the process whereby workers organise collectively and bargain with employers. In various national labour and employment law contexts, collective bargaining takes on a more specific legal meaning: in a broad sense, however, it is the coming together of workers to negotiate their terms of employment.
Siptu wants the Government to commit to the Charter of Fundamental Rights, and especially that on collective bargaining, which forces employers to recognise employee representatives.
Yesterday, while campaigning in Kerry, Mr Cowen said collective bargaining could only be dealt with in the context of social partnership. But he said he would do all he could to ensure the issue is dealt with satisfactorily. “This won’t be resolved before June 12. The best place for this to be discussed is in the context of social partnership,” he said.
In response, Siptu president, Jack O’Connor told the Sunday Independent: “We can’t move any more on this.
We would like to say ‘Yes’, but as long as this isn’t resolved, we can’t. If this is left to social partnership, this could be — and more than likely will be — vetoed by the employers. All we want is a guarantee now.”
Siptu has said it will only recommend support for the Treaty if the Government commits to legislate for an entitlement to the benefits of proper collective bargaining for workers in Ireland, which also prohibits discrimination against workers seeking to exercise it, which is enshrined as a fundamental right in the Treaty.
This would mean that workers in Ireland would have the benefit of one of the key “balancing” elements which will apply to virtually every other citizen in Europe if the Treaty is ratified.
However, Siptu says it is not prepared to support a “watered down” version which would expose workers in Ireland to the “free market” aspects of the Treaty while being denied the balancing protection of real collective bargaining.
- Jody Corcoran and Daniel McConnell
