Labour Court recommends shop-floor work for Alfa Cavan supervisors

The Labour Court recommended that supervisors at Alfa Cavan Rubber Manufacturing Company Limited assist on the shop floor when necessary or when time allowed outside their normal duties. The recommendation was signed on 12 February 1988. The dispute with the Irish Transport And General Workers' Union concerned supervisors' and foremen's roles, including whether they could perform general operative work and the introduction of a shift leader post. The union said the arrangements breached a 1982 agreement; the company argued that economic pressures and absenteeism required greater flexibility. The Court recommended that the company monitor time spent on shop-floor work so full-time operatives could be re-employed when work became available.