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Industrial Relations Update on Tesco Ireland
Monday 02 July 2012, 02pm
Mandate Trade Union
Industrial Relations Update on Tesco Ireland
June 2012
Dear Members,
Please find below a brief update regarding a number of industrial relations matters which are ongoing within Tesco Ireland Limited.
Pay Claim:
Following the National Shop Stewards meeting held in November 2011, where the Labour Court Recommendation regarding Mandate and SIPTU’s pay claim was overwhelmingly accepted, negotiations with the company commenced in February 2012. A number of meetings took place between the company and union representatives following which proposals regarding pay were agreed and accepted following a national ballot of all the members concerned.
Sick Pay Scheme:
The clarification document regarding the Tesco Ireland sick pay schemes and social welfare payments has been circulated to all locations. It is imperative that difficulties regarding social welfare deductions going forward are brought immediately to the attention to local representatives in order that they can be addressed in a timely manner.
Store Cleaning Express Stores:
There are currently 27 Express stores format throughout the country employing approximately 450 staff. The company recently re-structured its cleaning operation which had direct consequences for our members. We wrote to the company seeking a meeting to discuss this and a range of other issues related to the express stores including security concerns and the duties and responsibilities attached to the general assistant and team leader grades. A working group of representatives from express stores around the country has been established and two meetings have taken place with senior company representatives to-date with a third scheduled to take place at the end of July. The company have advised of its intention to seek a collective agreement specific to the Express stores and we will keep members informed of developments as appropriate.
New Staff Handbook
The company have advised of its intention to draft a new staff handbook. Members will be aware that the most recent version was not agreed with your representatives and indeed did not reflect the contents of our collective agreements; consequently members were advised not to sign for receipt of same or accept its contents. We welcome the fact that the company have approached the union in advance of any new publication with a view to agreeing its contents etc and we will keep you informed as the matter progresses.
Time and Attendance:
A meeting of the T & A working group took place on the 16th April. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss the orderly full implementation of the time and attendance system and identify any potential difficulties that may arise as a result of same. The group comprises of senior company representatives, shop stewards from Clearwater, Clarehall and Tullamore along with Mandate Officials. The union group outlined a number of concerns/queries regarding the system and its ability to deal with the various working arrangements in existence throughout the company. Further meetings are scheduled to take place and we will advise members of progress as appropriate.
Dot Com Working Group
The working group met on 19th April. The purpose of the group is to review the working conditions of the Dot Com drivers (300 in 31 stores), operation generally and identify areas which need to be improved upon. The group consists of senior company representatives from Ireland and the Dot Com operation in the UK, 4 drivers and Mandate Officials. A comprehensive presentation was made by the company regarding future developments in the Dot Com area. The union undertook to consult with all the drivers and a questionnaire was distributed to all the relevant locations seeking information which will be of great benefit to the representatives. To-date approximately one third of the questionnaires has been returned and we are currently collating the data in advance of the next meeting scheduled to take place on the 26th July in the Clarehall store. It is not too late to return the questionnaire or request new ones if you didn’t receive the original, please consult your local representative should you have any queries regarding this.
Store Forums:
The revised store forum agenda has been circulated to all locations along with return envelopes, which should be used to post the minutes of your store forum back to your relevant official on a monthly basis. It is imperative that all stores submit their forum minutes in the revised agreed format and we will be reviewing the quantity and quality of those returned at the next series of Regional Forums. Your co-operation with this is greatly appreciated as the information gathered is very useful in identifying whether issues are local or more widely spread.
Training:
We recently collated all recent Tesco/Mandate Agreements and put them into a single document which is available from your Mandate office, these will help shop steward/representatives deal with any queries that you may have in store.
In addition, shop stewards have been issued with a meeting record book which should be used to record proceedings at all formal meetings with the Company. Members wishing to make a complaint/grievance should use the appropriate grievance form.
Copies of all the aforementioned documents are available from your local representative.
All upcoming training courses are available on the mandate website.
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