Civil Service pay dispute ends in defeat

national | worker & community struggles and protests | opinion/analysis Wednesday September 15, 2004 09:32 by Time For Change - NIPSA tfc.nipsa at ntlworld dot com

Time for change in NIPSA – Time for a fighting democratic union

The end of the Civil Service pay dispute has been a bitter pill for NIPSA members to swallow. NIPSA members have fought the governments for eight months firmly believing that our campaign was about fundamental issues. As the dispute developed that view was confirmed.
This dispute has been a struggle for the right to be properly recognised as a trade union including the right to negotiate on behalf of members, it was a struggle for the end of low pay in the Civil Service and it was the a struggle to end pay inequality.
Unfortunately in the final settlement none of these issues was properly addressed.

The dispute spluttered to a halt when the majority of the NIPSA Civil Service Executive decided not to continue that struggle. It would be a mistake on the part of the government to misinterpret this outcome. Throughout the dispute it was clear that NIPSA members wished to escalate the struggle but they could not find a way to make their voices heard with sufficient force. The Executive majority has consistently been out of step and has in reality proved unequal to the task the members expected of them. NIPSA now has a very serious debate to conduct. Lessons must be learned and radical changes made to the union so that we are never again led to this position.

The history of this dispute has been one of marvellous determination by members and gross mistakes by the leadership; the concluding consultation was a farce. That consultation has left a number of unanswered questions.

• Did non Executive speakers address meetings when the Executive had specifically directed that Civil Service Executive speakers should do so?

• Did key areas of the union fail to hold meetings?

• Were branches polled without holding meetings?

The CS Executive, dominated by a ‘Reclaim the Union’ majority, have failed to deliver the victory in this dispute which should have been attainable. It is now time to censure that leadership and seek the right of the membership to receive a clear explanation and have an opportunity to debate that failure.
Branches should meet to discuss the outcome of the dispute and move motions calling for

• Publication of all the minutes of CS Exec Cttee meetings during the dispute (including previously omitted sections).
• Censure of the CS Executive
• A special CS Group conference to fully discuss the conduct of the dispute.

No one should doubt that from this debate and the experience of this dispute a stronger, fighting, democratic union will emerge to take forward this struggle.