THE ASSOCIATION representing soldiers, sailors and air crew, PDforra, last night vowed to support unions representing front-line workers despite having been instructed by Minister for Defence Willie O’Dea to disassociate itself from an alliance of the unions.
A letter of support from PDforra was read out at a meeting of the new 24/7 Frontline Services Alliance in Kilkenny last night.
PDforra general secretary Gerry Rooney said his association would continue to support the objectives of the other front-line unions as they tried to prevent a further erosion of their pay and conditions.
“The campaign has set out to tell the truth about the contribution of front-line service workers and the extremely difficult and challenging jobs they undertake on behalf of the people of Ireland, both at home and overseas,” Mr Rooney wrote in the letter read out last night.
He said it was “important that the decision makers and opinion formers are aware of the risks that guards, nurses, firefighters, soldiers and prison officers” take on behalf of the general public.
“They endure the risk of assault, death, injury and ill health – and this risk is taken on a 24-hour a day, 365 days a year basis. PDforra supports you in your efforts to deliver this message and ensure that front-line service workers are treated fairly.”
The 24/7 alliance is made up of groups representing front-line workers such as gardaí, nurses and prison officers. They have come together to fight any attempts to reduce their pay, particularly their allowances for working antisocial hours.
However, members of the Defence Forces are banned from industrial action and PDforra’s involvement in a workers’ alliance led to concerns within the Department of Defence.
Officials from the department wrote to the organisation saying the Defence Act specifically prohibited it from standing with other representative bodies or unions in any joint campaign.
