The Technical Engineering and Electrical Union (TEEU) is to begin balloting 10,000 electricians on industrial action after it claimed a 5 per cent cost-of-living pay rise is being blocked by employers.
The union’s executive took the decision to ballot last night.
It said this followed a legal move by the newly formed body National Electrical Contractors Ireland and a number of individual contractors last week.
They obtained a temporary injunction to stop the implementation of a Labour Court award agreed by the union with the main employers through a registered employment agreement (REA).
Such agreements on pay between unions and companies registered by the Labour Court are legally binding
“If the legal challenge is upheld it will undermine a voluntary system of collective agreements that has worked successfully for decades and the legal action has the potential to affect hundreds of thousands of other workers covered by REAs in areas such as construction and retailing,” the TEEU said in a statement.
The union said the injunction is due for review in the High Court on June 24th but that the legal process “could take some time”.
It said this did not prevent it from balloting members for industrial action to ensure it can initiate disputes with employers who refuse to pay the agreed cost-of-living increases.
“Action is only likely to be taken against employers who refuse to pay the 5 per cent per cent.”