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FULL RECOMMENDATION
PARTIES : COPE FOUNDATION DIVISION :
SUBJECT: 1. Incremental Pay Scale and Arrears of Staff Initially Employed with St. Vincent's Centre , Cork 2. The Union agrees that engagement took place with the HSE on its taking over of the centre and the offer of the once-off payment to all staff was balloted and accepted by the INMO Members and part accepted by SIPTU Members. However, at a meeting in 2021 the Union believed the HSE gave a commitment to engage on the issue with the five Members separate to the €3,000 offer. 3. The Union request the Court to issue a recommendation in respect of its argument put forth in its detailed submission.
4. 1. The HSE states that on taking charge of the facility, engagement took place with relevant Trade Unions and interim arrangements were put in place until the staff were transferred to the new Employer (COPE Foundation). 2. The HSE states that during the intensive engagements with Unions a one-off payment of €3,000 was offered to all staff in recognition of the hardship experienced by staff and their ongoing commitment to the work of the centre. 3. The HSE states the €3,000 once-off payment, which was largely accepted by SIPTU Members comprehensively addresses all issues raised by the Union in this matter.
The within dispute concerns a claim on behalf of five named care staff employed at a residential care centre for persons with mild to medium intellectual disabilities. The centre has been operated by the COPE Foundation since 1 October 2021 following a transfer of undertakings on that date from the previous licensed provider, St. Vincent’s Centre DAC. The Health Service Executive had taken charge of the centre on an interim caretaker basis from March 2017 pursuant to section 64 of the Health Act 2007. The five Workers concerned are seeking retrospective payment of incremental pay on the appropriate HSE scale for the period 29 March 2017 to 30 September 2020. They submit that they were employed by St. Vincent’s DAC on the understanding that their salaries were aligned with the relevant HSE incremental pay scale. They are not in possession of any contractual documentation that confirms this to be the case. It is submitted on behalf of COPE Foundation that an agreement was tabled by the HSE with the INMO and with SIPTU in September 2020 that provided for the payment of incremental credit to staff members where this had been expressly provided for in the contract of employment entered into by an individual employee and St. Vincent’s DAC. It is further submitted that this proposal has been fully accepted by the INMO and partly accepted by SIPTU. It was acknowledged by both Parties, that the inter-regnum period was a particularly difficult one for all staff at the centre, many of whom experienced issues with Revenue and the Department of Social Protection due to the governance challenges that had to be addressed by the HSE interim management during that period. In recognition of the hardship experienced by staff and their ongoing commitment to the work of the centre despite that, the HSE agreed to make a once-off extraordinary payment of €3,000.00 per person. Although that once-off payment is a separate and distinct matter – and is not per se before the Court as part of the within dispute – it has not been paid to the grades represented by SIPTU pending the outcome of the issue before the Court. Recommendation The Court recommends that the Parties re-engage locally to find a means of resolving the within claim by the five affected Workers. The Court further recommends that the HSE’s undertaking with regard to the once-off payment to the grades represented by SIPTU be treated separately from the dispute with the five Workers so that payment can be made as soon as practicable to wider group of staff represented by SIPTU. The Court so recommends.
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