Dublin City Council sets 60,000 target for clampers

Dublin's clampers have been set a target by Dublin City Council to clamp 60,000 vehicles a year, according to documents seen by The Irish Times .

A letter sent by the company to staff claims the council has threatened to pay less for the service if the targets are not met by clamping company Dublin Street Parking Services. The company has sought to change the way it pays its staff to reach the targets set by the council. It employs up to 50 staff involved in clamping and towing at any one time.

If 60,000 Dublin vehicles are clamped this year, the company has offered to pay staff a bonus of €2,000 each. If overall targets are not met, only individual clampers who manage to clamp 2,800 vehicles in a year will be rewarded. For staff involved in towing vehicles instead of clamping the target is 1,467 relocations or removals.

The bonus for individual achievement is lower at €635. Staff will also get a 1.5 per cent increase in pay if the 60,000 target is met in 2014 and 2015.

Other performance-related benefits would allow staff to finish early if they clamp or tow a certain number of vehicles in one day.

Clampers can leave a 10-hour shift after 8½ hours if they have clamped 21 vehicles. Those working on tow trucks get to leave 1½ hours early if they have relocated or removed 15 vehicles. If they also apply clamps, they can combine the two figures and leave early if they reach 18 enforcement actions.

Previously, staff bonuses had been awarded on the basis of attendance at work. The agreement was brokered between Siptu and the company last August by a facilitator nominated by the Labour Court in order to settle a dispute over a 2.5 per cent pay claim made by staff.

The agreement was recommended for acceptance by the Labour Court last December, but was rejected by staff. Accepting the new bonus system would involve the workers setting aside any pay claim until post-2016.

In a letter to staff last year, sent prior to the appointment of the facilitator, the company said the council was not happy with the number of clampings in 2012. “We were expected to deliver approximately 60,000 clamps in 2012. We delivered approximately 54,000. If we continue to deliver 10 per cent less than the service that is expected, the council wants to pay less for the service.”

A spokesman for DSPS said it remained committed to the recommendations of the Labour Court and “would expect that our staff and Siptu will do the same”.