Over 120 Roscommon County Council Staff who had announced their decision to take strike action from tomorrow (Monday 21st) have cancelled the planned action.
The news follows talks yesterday and today between Roscommon County Council Management and representatives of the staff’s Union SIPTU. The talks were mediated by Michael Fitzmaurice TD.
The dispute related to a small number of Roscommon County Council Outdoor Staff being investigated and placed on administrative leave over alleged bad timekeeping and bad practices. As part of the settlement those staff are to return to work tomorrow. No further details have been revealed.
Commenting after the news broke Michael Fitzmaurice said “I welcome the resolution of the threatened strike at Roscommon County Council and I want to thank all sides for their co-operation and engagement in the negotiations which were held over the weekend. All sides worked hard from 6am until midnight on Friday and Saturday to resolve the situation and it is very positive that there has been a resolution and I want to thank all sides for their co-operation in the talks which were face to face, and on the telephone. The very valuable service that these workers provide can now proceed as usual and this is a very positive outcome for the people of the county” he added.
A quick resolution to the dispute looked unlikely on Friday after Roscommon County Council CEO Eugene Cummins has described the behaviour of the staff’s Union, SIPTU, as “totally outrageous”. Mr. Cummins said that he wasn’t prepared to accept that hours not worked are paid for and that he was duty-bound to investigate the allegations. He went on to say that he wants to protect taxpayers’ money and ensure that it’s spent efficiently.
In related news, SIPTU are set to ballot over 50 local retained part-time fire fighters over changes proposed as part of the blueprint for the future of fire service, called Keeping Communities Safe.