Luas drivers to consider proposed pay rises of up to 18%

Labour Court recommendation aimed at settling dispute with operator Transdev

Luas drivers are to be asked to consider new recommendations, including pay increases of up to 18.3 per cent, by the Labour Court in a bid to resolve their dispute with operator Transdev.

Trade union Siptu, which represents the drivers, said on Monday the recommendations included pay increases up to 2020.

The strike has brought the Dublin tram service to a halt on 12 separate dates and a series of stoppages is also planned for next month.

Strikes due to take place last Thursday and Friday were called off pending talks at the Labour Court.

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The court has now issued recommendations in relation to three issues which the drivers said were key reasons for their rejection of Workplace Relations Commission proposals last March.

Siptu said on Monday the Labour Court had recommended pay increases from 15.6 per cent to 18.3 per cent from now to September 2020. The deal would include a long-service increment of 2.5 per cent included after three years on the maximum of the scale.

Increase

The drivers had told the court the pay increase previously proposed by Transdev was too little and that it had been structured incorrectly.

Siptu said the Labour Court had recommended against the company on its proposal to increase their duty from 9-9½ hours a day.

The drivers had argued this was too onerous and had health and safety implications.

New entrants

Drivers were also in disagreement with Transdev’s proposal to bring in new entrants on a scale 10 per cent lower than existing employees for the first three years.

The Labour Court recommended that this issue be the subject of a review no later than 18 months from the date of acceptance of its recommendations.

It also recommended that other non-cost issues highlighted by the drivers be referred to the Workplace Relations Commission for conciliation.

If no resolution is reached in a given time frame, then the issues should be referred back to the court.

The court also recommended that the parties agree to a joint review of pay and conditions of employment in light rail operations across Europe in order to ascertain if driver pay and conditions are out of line with EU comparators.

It said that as drivers had forfeited their bonus for 2016, a “lead-in” payment of €750 should be made to them subject to acceptance of the recommendations.

On acceptance of the recommendations, the court said the sick pay scheme, from which drivers were removed earlier this month, should be restored and that those taken off it during the dispute be paid arrears.

Money owed

Pay cut by 10 per cent should also be restored and all money owed to the drivers should be paid.

Any Siptu members stood down during the dispute for part of a shift during normal working days should also be paid money owed.

Siptu said it would now commence a process of consultation with members by way of general meetings and will then conduct “a democratic secret ballot on this recommendation”.