Builder Jones Engineering and its US owner face a complaint to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) over the Irish group’s treatment of three trade union shop stewards.
Jones subsidiary HA O’Neill is taking High Court action against trade union Unite and its three shop stewards following a dispute over the restoration of paid travel time to building workers that resulted in a one-day strike in March 2023 at two sites in Dublin.
As a result of the legal action, Unite and global trade union federation Building and Woodworkers International (BWI) have filed a complaint against Jones Engineering and its owner, US-based investor, Cathexis, with the OECD.
They allege the company breached the organisation’s Guidelines for Multi-national Enterprises on Ethical Business Conduct.
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The news follows recent confirmation that Jones Engineering is one of several Irish companies involved in data centre construction under investigation by local and European competition regulators.
Unite and BWI say Jones singled out the shop stewards for their role in the travel pay dispute, which interferes with their rights to join a trade union and discriminates against them for their union activities, contrary to the organisation’s guidelines.
A preliminary hearing on the complaint is scheduled for next Monday. Unite will be represented by James McCabe, the union’s regional organiser for construction, who filed the complaint along with Ambet Yuson, BWI’s general secretary.
The unions claim the shop stewards were “falsely accused of gross misconduct in two court proceedings and threatened with financial liabilities for their activities relating to a legitimate trade union industrial action”.
They maintain that the High Court action is meant to “financially punish” the three shop stewards and that it unfairly singles them out from 180 workers who took part in the strike.
They and their families fear the “pending court proceedings, unemployment and unknown financial consequences”, the complaint states.
One has been moved to another position, leaving his previous colleagues without a union representative.
Unite and BWI also say that the prospect of a court hearing leaves the three officials unable to effectively represent co-workers.
They want the company to drop the court action, reimburse the workers’ legal costs and restore their shifts and duties.
Failure to abide by OECD guidelines can rule companies out of bidding for state or publicly funded contracts in the organisation’s member countries.
Jones Engineering pointed out on Thursday that it was committed to maintaining constructive relationships with its workers and their representatives.
“While we regret Unite’s decision to file a complaint with the OECD, we welcome the opportunity to engage transparently in the process,” a statement said.
The company added that it was confident its actions adhered to OECD guidelines and best practices.
Unite workers held the one-day strike on March 10th, 2023, at Pfizer in Grange Castle, Dublin, and Intel in Leixlip, Co Kildare, after the failure of talks at the Mechanical Engineering and Building Services Contractors’ Association, Workplace Relations Commission and Labour Court.
HA O’Neill sought a High Court injunction restraining Unite and the shop stewards from engaging in further industrial action pending a final hearing of the dispute. The company maintained that the industrial action was unlawful and that there was no valid dispute between it and Unite.
However, the Supreme Court subsequently ruled that the High Court was wrong to grant the injunction as Unite had followed procedures laid down in the Industrial Relations Act, 1990.
Unite and BWI have filed the complaint against Jones and Cathexis in the Republic, US and UK. Cathexis owns businesses in energy, data centre building and property.
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