Labour Court recommends renewed talks on Saint-Gobain shift dispute

The Labour Court recommended that Saint-Gobain Contruction Products (Ire) Limited and 30 General Operatives, represented by the Services Industrial Professional Technical Union, resume talks over Friday-night shifts. The recommendation was signed on 1 December 2016. The union argued that Friday-night shifts had been promised as overtime with premium payments, while management said the company-union agreement provided for the shifts when market demand required them. The Court found the agreement and the company’s clarifications difficult to reconcile. It recommended a full exchange of information, with financial and production experts and the Workplace Relations Commission available to assist if needed. Talks were to be completed within six weeks, with outstanding issues referred back to the Court for a definitive recommendation. Existing interim financial arrangements were to continue in the meantime.