DUBLIN CITY’S 110 former binmen have yet to be told what their new positions will be, more than a week after the city council withdrew from refuse collection services.
The men were told last week that they would learn today whether they were to to be reassigned to duties in the parks, water, roads, housing or drainage sections.
It is understood about 25 men lodged appeals with the council arguing they should not be moved out of the cleansing department and that about six have so far won their appeals.
John Judge, divisional organiser with Siptu, said management had yet to give full details on how many jobs were available in each section, what exactly the jobs would entail and where they were in the city.
“The men are annoyed about the fact they have not been told where they will be working and they are deeply annoyed about the loss of the cleansing allowance.”
Siptu and Impact officials have been negotiating with management over the past week, via an arbitrator, over the men’s future and the allowance which has been paid to the binmen since 1997 in recognition of the dirty and all-weather conditions in which they worked.
Loss of the allowance would mean an effective pay-cut of about 9 per cent, said Mr Judge.
Although the council may be willing to continue paying for a limited period “they are determined to buy it out, do away with it”.
Ronald Sherlock, Siptu shop steward at the Davitt Road depot, said the men were “very annoyed” but hoped for “some kind of breakthrough on all this” today.
Unions and management meet this morning and the men are due to be updated on negotiations later in the day.
