A dispute arising from efforts by two Dublin city centre hotels to pay existing workers at the new lower minimum wage rate is to go to the Labour Relations Commission (LRC), the High Court was told today.
On that basis, Ms Justice Mary Laffoy struck out injunctions secured by the hotel operators which imposed conditions on how picketing of the hotels over the dispute might be conducted.
Pickets were placed by the trade union Siptu outside the Davenport and Mont Clare Hotels on Lower Merrion Street in a dispute involving five workers who had refused to sign new contracts which would have the effect of reducing their pay - the previous national minimum wage rate of €8.65 per hour - by
€1 per hour to the new minimum rate of €7.65.
In seeking the injunctions, Persian Properties, trading as O’Callaghan Hotels, claimed the Industrial Relations Act 1990 was being breached on grounds persons other than workers and trade union officials were taking part in the pickets.
Siptu had disputed the claims.
Yesterday, Ms Justice Laffoy was informed the injunctions could be struck out as an agreement had been entered into by the workers and hotel operators. The court heard the parties would go before the Labour Relations Commission later this week and the picket outside the hotels was lifted last night.
Marguerite Bolger SC, for Persian Properties, also said it intended to seek an order for its costs against Siptu on the basis the action had been properly brought.
William Hamilton, for Siptu, opposed that costs application and said no order should be made for costs, meaning each side pay their own.
Adjourning the costs issue to later this week, the judge asked both sides to take a pragmatic and common sense approach.
Marguerite Bolger SC, for Persian Properties, said it intended to seek an order for its costs against Siptu on the basis the action had been properly brought.
William Hamilton, for Siptu, opposed that costs application and said no order should be made for costs, meaning each side pays its own.
Last week, the judge had granted a number of orders including an interim injunction restraining Siptu having more than six people on pickets outside the hotels at any one time.
Other interim orders required any pickets of the hotels should be conducted by employees and an appropriate number of Siptu officials within the meaning of Section 11 of the 1990 Industrial Relations Act.
The judge said she was satisfied to grant those injunctions as they did not seek to prevent workers carrying out a picket in what was accepted to be a legitimate dispute.