Mayo Section 39 workers vote for strike action in pay dispute
SIPTU members working in Section 39 organisations in Mayo have voted in favour of strike action in a long-running dispute over pay.
The ballot result nationally showed around 97% in favour of taking action on a turnout of 70%.
The union is scheduled for talks at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) on Monday in a bid to resolve the impasse.
The union has been frustrated by the government's failure to honour a pay agreement struck at the WRC in October 2023.
The agreement included a commitment to work towards restoring the pay link between the public sector and the community and voluntary sector.
Section 39 organisations are privately owned charities and agencies, including the Western Care Association, that are contracted by the State to provide healthcare services.
"The government must stop treating our members, who provide essential disability care, elder and home care, as some poor cousin of the public health service. It is wrong," SIPTU Sector Organiser Damian Ginley told RTÉ News.
In a statement, Mayo TD Paul Lawless stated: “We cannot claim to prioritise the needs of vulnerable people unless we can address this core issues relating to the disability sector.
“The core and fundamental issue is recruitment and retention. The CEO of the Disability Federation of Ireland stated that this issue is having a catastrophic impact.
"The reason that it is having such an impact and that there are so many difficulties is because two-thirds of disability services are delivered by the voluntary sector. This Government has utterly failed the voluntary sector.”
“It is interesting that commitments were made in the lead-up to the election but that these do not appear in the programme for government.
“All the people in these organisations are seeking is equal pay for equal work. There is not a Minister who would accept an inferior pay scale for delivering the same work of his or her counterpart.
"The government would not accept these terms for themselves but see no issue in foisting them upon the caregivers in our community.”
Deputy Lawless warned that the government’s continued neglect has now led directly to industrial action—a crisis that could have been entirely avoided had the Government upheld its commitments.
“I will make a plea to the Minister of State on behalf of the hundreds of thousands of people who work in the voluntary sector.
"These people want to continue to deliver these services but they are finding it incredibly difficult. Nobody in the care sector wants to resort to strike action but it’s necessary when the government refuses to honour their pre-election promises."
With the strike vote now confirmed, Deputy Lawless is demanding immediate intervention from the Government to prevent essential services from collapsing.
“I ask the Minister of State to do what’s right and give those who care for the most vulnerable people the respect, recognition, and pay they deserve,” he added.