Health & Safety

Grief in the workplace - Responding to suicide guide

Congress was involved today in the launch of “Grief in the Workplace Responding to Suicide – A Guide for Employers”. The full guide and accompanying E-learning course can be accessed here, The resource was developed in partnership with the Irish Hospice Foundation, the HSE National Office of Suicide...

Ireland’s new Right to Disconnect: How it works

Work-life balance has always been a priority for trade unions. The eight-hour day campaign was one of our earliest and most far-reaching achievements. It has benefited generations of workers. In recent years however, the short working day has come under threat from an always-on work culture. While...

Trade Unions & Mental Health eBook

21 Oct, 2021

Mental health is an issue for us all. According to Mental Health Ireland everybody will experience some kind of mental health issue during their lives, with the vast majority coping and making a full recovery. The risk of mental health problems has been compounded during the Covid-19 pandemic with a...

Sick pay is getting better

Ireland is completely out of line with European norms in not requiring employers to continue to pay a worker’s wage if sick and unable to work. That is about to change. The pandemic widely exposed the big failings in how we look after our workers when they are unable to work, the lack of a legal...

Response to Cabinet decision on Covid workplace restrictions - ICTU

Responding to the decision taken by the Government to continue with the application of protective measures within the workplace, Irish Congress of Trade Unions General Secretary Patricia King said: 'ICTU’s primary concern is keeping workers safe and ensuring that all workplaces are as safe as...

Congress Friday Briefing: A breath of fresh air

17 Sep, 2021

While schools, much of hospitality and others have already opened, we will have, from Monday 20th, a wider return to workplaces in most sectors. In our Friday briefing on Friday 17th September we will focus on two aspects of Covid-19 infection prevention that are widely misunderstood – mask-wearing...

Worker Safety 'a top priority' as Covid restrictions eased

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions said today (Aug. 31) that ensuring workers can “return to the workplace safely must be a top priority” for Government plans on the lifting of Covid 19 restrictions and reopening the wider economy. Speaking in response to the publication of the official plan...

Letter from Patricia King, General Secretary to An Taoiseach re Covid-19 Next Phase of Return to Work

25 Aug, 2021

Dear Taoiseach, I refer to the above and my understanding that the Government intends to set out it’s future plan in this regard early next week. In light of the fact that the next meeting of the Stakeholder Group on the National Safety Protocol, under the chairmanship of your department, is...

NGOs and Unions call on Government to ratify Convention 190

Gender Equality a key focus in Convention ratification campaign. ActionAid Ireland, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and Men’s Development Network have joined forces to push for the prompt passage of new laws protecting workers – most particularly women – from harassment and abuse. Tánaiste Leo...

MANDATE and ICTU sought greater protections for workers on Government initiated Hospitality Group

As we mark the reopening of the hospitality sector it is important to point out that Mandate Trade Union and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) alternated as the worker representatives on the Government established Hospitality Group since it was established a number of weeks ago. The role of...

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