Local authority dispute resolved through talks at WRC

A dispute between local authority staff, represented by Fórsa, and the Local Government Management Association (LGMA) has been resolved through talks at the Workplace Relations Commission.

The union told its members on Tuesday that workers should resume normal engagement with local councillors, TDs and Senators, but has cautioned that it may take a period of time to clear any backlog that has built up over the course of the dispute.

Fórsa national secretary Richy Carrothers said the union had achieved “a real breakthrough which provides a clear roadmap for the establishment of job evaluation in the sector”, with further “detailed negotiations” to follow at the scoping stage.

Speaking in relation to the news, local Sinn Féin Councillor Derren Ó Brádaigh said “The announcement today is a win for ordinary workers at a time when so many hard-working people are just not being heard amid an ongoing cost of living crisis.

“As a part of this dispute, council staff with their union representative body Fórsa agreed that they would not engage with elected representatives on their constituency work, until calls for job evaluation were addressed.

“And whilst this made work for us a little frustrating, I fully supported the right of all local authority staff to pursue this particular course of action”.

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