Labour Court recommends higher pay and night premium for Conduit call operators

The Labour Court recommended higher pay and a 15% night shift premium for Emergency Call Answering Service operators employed by Conduit Enterprises Limited, following a dispute with the Communications Workers Union. The recommendation was dated 5 June 2018. It set hourly rates at €11.50 from that date, €12 from 1 January 2019 and €12.50 from 1 June 2019, with a 15% premium for each hour worked from midnight to 8am. The union said the operators’ overall pay and conditions were inferior to those of emergency call takers in An Garda Síochána, the HSE and local authority fire services. The Court found them comparable and in similar employments, but said the difference from HSE ambulance call takers was justified while differences from Garda and local authority fire service call takers were not. It made no recommendation on pensions or existing weekend rates.