Considering the Impact of the ‘Right to Bargain’ Legislation in Ireland: A Review

Abstract

Ireland is rare among advanced economies in not having statutory trade union recognition legislation for collective bargaining purposes. The matter has been a source of policy contention over the years with attempts to resolve it encapsulated in the so-called 'Right to Bargain' legislation, introduced in 2001. This legislation has sought to circumvent statutory recognition in Ireland by putting in place an alternative mechanism for unions to represent members in non-union firms where collective bargaining is not practiced. This review, based on a mixture of empirical and documentary evidence, demonstrates that IRAA 2001-4 was moderately successful for a short period in generating pay rises, improved employment conditions and better access to procedures for union members in non-unionised firms. Indeed, in some respects, it was a superior institutional mechanism to a statutory recognition regime.3

Trade Unions in the European Union

“…The Irish framework lacks an enforceable legal framework for union recognition, which hinders union presence in the workplace, arguably a key factor for unionization (Toubøl and Jensen 2014). While workers have a constitutional right to join a union, Irish law does not require employers to recognize or negotiate with them (Cullinane and Dobbins 2014). In this respect, the reliance of the Irish economy on foreign direct investment (FDI) has played a key role (D'Art and Turner 2005), as multinationals (especially of US origin) increasingly preferred to operate non-unionized workplaces (Gunnigle et al 2009).…”

“…To motivate employers to engage in collective bargaining, the Industrial Relations Acts 2001-2004 nevertheless provided that in workplaces where collective bargaining would not take place unions could obtain binding determinations on pay, working conditions and conflict resolution practices from the Labour Court instead (Cullinane and Dobbins 2014;Doherty 2016). Following a legal challenge by Ryanair in 2007, however, the legislation was deprived of its meaning by the Supreme Court.…”

Social dialogue and the new world of work in Ireland

“…D' Art and Turner (2011) argue that this light regulation had little impact on trade union access to the workplace, or on reversing the decline in union density in the private sector. However, a limited number of collective agreements were negotiated under the system regulated by the 2001 and 2004 Acts, leading to pay increases and improved working conditions for some workers in non-unionized firms (Cullinane and Dobbins 2014).…”

Ireland's conundrum on union bargaining rights: assessing the Industrial Relations Amendment Act 2015

“…This involved third‐party state dispute resolution institutions comparing collective bargaining outcomes in unionised firms with those of union members in those workplaces in dispute, where employers refused to recognise unions for collective bargaining purposes. The procedures allowed unions to resolve disputes involving members in workplaces where collective bargaining was absent (see Cullinane and Dobbins, ; D'Art and Turner, ; Doherty, ; Gibbons, ). Unions could submit disputed items to the then Labour Relations Commission for conciliation, and then, if unresolved, the Labour Court would issue recommendations on disputed pay and conditions.…”

“…About two‐thirds of recommendations backed union claims, providing pay rises, better conditions and improved grievance procedures. Recommendations often shadowed collective bargaining norms in unionised sectors, imposing similar outcomes on non‐union firms (Cullinane and Dobbins, ). Thus, echoing Ewing's () distinction, the procedures became more than a representational mechanism and quasi‐regulatory in colonising non‐union zones with unionised norms.…”