The biennial conference of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, held last week in Belfast, provided a good opportunity to assess the achievements and preoccupations of the trade union movement in Ireland today. The main themes addressed provided a roll call of these - Partnership 2000 and growing union militancy in the midst of the current economic boom, the need to make partnership work at company level, union recognition, equality between men and women, taxation and welfare policy, Economic and Monetary Union and the conflict in Northern Ireland.
The partnership theme dominated discussion of economic and social policy in the Republic. There were several warnings from well-known trade unionists that a failure to deliver on it at national and local levels could endanger the current agreement, which has more than two years to run, or make it much less likely to be renewed. IBEC representatives were quick to insist that employers are adhering to its terms and that solemn undertakings have been given to pay them. It is not difficult to detect sabre rattling on both sides. Nor is it surprising that trade union leaders should be coming under pressure from their members, given the very strong performance and growth in the economy.
Much of this success can justifiably be attributed to the partnership roach, which has brought together trade unions, employers and other social sectors with the Government, creating a consensus and a stability about macroeconomic policy. But continuing unemployment and persistent social inequalities sit badly with this economic progress. Many PAYE workers, whether white or blue collar, feel they have not benefited commensurately. The strong vote received by Ms Carolann Duggan, a rank and file candidate in the recent SIPTU elections, clearly reflects this sentiment. The partnership approach has been designed to offer an alternative path to traditional wage militancy; but it requires reciprocity at national and local levels if it is to succeed. According to the general secretary of the ICTU, Mr Peter Cassells, workers "have failed totally to penetrate the citadels of capital and ownership in the workplace", through profit- sharing, share option schemes or other forms of stakeholding.
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, in his address to the conference, was alive to these concerns. He promised action on a minimum wage, partnership and union recognition, in line with Fianna Fail's traditionally strong support among trade unionists. The recognition issue raises many questions about trade union credibility among younger workers in the private sector, who have been benefiting from a growth in employment opportunities among multinational firms. Too many such firms refuse to recognise trade unions, although it must also be said that in many companies there is no great demand for it. An estimated 30 per cent of private sector employees are trade union members compared to over 90 per cent in the public sector.
The trade union movement is a strong force in this State's policy- making, but it is facing a transition as many well-known figures retire and some of the younger ones move on to other spheres. In two years' time ICTU delegates will gather to consider whether another partnership programme is justified. Its spirit will be closely tested by continuing economic growth and a growing feeling among ordinary embers that its fruits must be more widely distributed.