Labour Court tells Lisheen Mine union to formulate definitive pay claim for laboratory technicians

The Labour Court recommended that the Services Industrial Professional Technical Union formulate a definitive claim for a negotiated pay structure for laboratory technicians at The Lisheen Mine. The union said staff on lower rates had no way to progress to higher rates paid to some colleagues; the company set pay individually, considering skills, qualifications and local salaries. The Court said pay should be determined using clearly discernible objective criteria and that the claim should then be negotiated through normal industrial relations processes. It noted the union was recognised for collective bargaining on the claim. The recommendation was signed on 25 May 2009.