Talks underway in effort to resolve Carroll Cuisine dispute

Negotiations between management at Carroll's Cuisine and the trade union SIPTU got underway yesterday (Tuesday) in an effort to resolve a dispute that led to three days of work stoppages at the company's Tullamore facility.

Last Friday, SIPTU announced it was suspending a 12-hour stoppage that had been scheduled for the following day, after management at the company agreed to enter into negotiations with the union.

The trade union said the talks would seek to secure a collective agreement that would deliver improvements in pay and conditions for workers at the meat-processing plant.

This morning (Wednesday), SIPTU's manufacturing divisional organiser, Neil McGowan, said talks were about to begin for a second day, having started during the day yesterday and reconvened last night.

"It's at an early enough stage, but the talks have been positive," Mr McGowan said.

In a statement last Friday, the trade union official described management's willingness to enter into talks as "a major step foward".

"We still have a long way to go, but we are hopeful that a collective agreement dealing with all outstanding issues in relation to pay, annual-leave entitlements, sick-pay and other conditions for workers can be secured in the near future," he said.

"The breakthrough comes after three days of industrial action by production-line workers over pay, conditions and the right to collective bargaining.

"Credit for this progress lies entirely with our members in the plant, who stood firm and united in taking the industrial action necessary to move management into a position where it became serious about resolving these longstanding workplace issues.

"The support of the local community and the solidarity shown by the wider trade-union movement have also been crucial in getting us to a point where management at Carroll’s Cuisine have formally acknowledged the union’s role and committed to engaging in negotiations guided by a genuine collective-bargaining process.

"These talks will focus on the staff’s longstanding demands for fair wages and clear recognition of their right to be represented by a trade union," he added.