Posted on 12/10/2005 2:10:07 PM PST by Lorianne
DUBLIN: Streets in the capital and other cities of Ireland were yesterday overflowing with people marching to protest against Irish Ferries’ plan to replace its workers with low-paid immigrants.
A total of over 70,000 labour union members and their supporters brought Irish cities and towns to a standstill carrying placards, beating drums and singing protest songs. The banners and placards carried various messages like “Equal Rights For All Workers”, “No slave ships on Irish seas” and “Stop Outsourcing” referring to the growing incidence of natives being replaced by immigrants willing to work for low wages.
In Dublin, a large mass of 40,000 people marched to the parliament. The rally was organized after talks between unions and employers led to nowhere.
Earlier this year, the company had tried to tempt its 543 unionised workers (one third its workforce) with redundancy payoffs worth £16.8 million. The unions were provoked after Irish Ferries began hiring immigrant labour a fortnight ago.
The new labourers, mostly from Latvia – were willing to work for as little as £2.4 an hour, which is less than one-half the country’s minimum wage. Outraged ferry workers seized control of two of the company’s four vessels – Ulysses and Isle of Inishmore. The company was forced to shut down services including its Irish Sea crossings between the UK and France. The company is expected to suffer losses amounting to £1.3m a day as a consequence to the strike.
The company said it would need foreign staff if it were to remain competitive and insisted that it was perfectly legal for it to ignore Ireland’s minimum wage as it was an international shipping company. The company has applied to register its ships in Cyprus and hopes it would give it some advantage on the current issue. If the company were to get its vessels registered under the Mediterranean island’s flag, it could easily bypass Irish labour laws. The company prefers hiring immigrant workers many of whom are from Central and Eastern Europe.
Irish prime minister Bertie Ahern has criticised the company for its move but refused to get directly involved in the row because he “cannot force them to do what he would like them to do” he said. The Labour Relations Commission too achieved little besides brokering talks for three days.
The country is currently going through a booming economy that has attracted a large influx of immigrants who take up work in bars, restaurants, farms and construction sites for very low wages.
The rally was Ireland’s biggest protest in 20 years and the issue of cheaper migrant labour entering the UK and Ireland is one that is increasing week by week and affecting more and more people in all sectors. The entrance of these workers into the job market means that instead of wage rises, there will probably be a downward trend in earnings.
...doing the work the Irish refuse to do...er...well, at least they're not drunks.
They're only doing the work the Irish left to do in America.
At one time the Irish WERE cheap foreign labor.
Sheesh, to think the Irish must now import Latvian bartenders! That goes beyond ironic, it's full bore bizarro.
Puts a whole spin on the IRISH NEED NOT APPLY idea.
“Equal Rights For All Workers” [except for the Latvians]
“No slave ships on Irish seas” [Latvians are slaves? Irish have seas?]
and “Stop Outsourcing” [jobs are still in Ireland]
And my biggest customer is outsourcing some of its software development to Ireland. I'm part of the "transition team".
That's interesting. I checked, and indeed, the Irish minimum wage is apparently 7.65 euros per hour, or US$9.02 at 1.18 euros to the dollar.
$9.02 per hour seems to me to be a large amount for a minimum wage.
I'm glad I got my Irish citizenship before they change the laws.
Begads and begorrah!
Get yourself an atlas: Ireland is surrounded by sea.
Always interesting to watch when the brogue is on the other foot.
Yes I believe there is even such a thing called THE IRISH SEA
I was concurring with ya
I know.
It's amazing anyone could claim otherwise ...
I doubt many.
Ireland, and many of the people there, have been among the least vocal and least critical regarding the United States.
Its far and rare to hear any negative comments directed at the United States coming from Ireland.
Its not like the EU which is always looking to take shots at us, Ireland has been pretty good in relation to US policies, and has avoided taking shots at us.
High wages are only good to those that get paid them.
Otherwise, those with high wages place big demands on the productive capacity of the economy.
It sort of like the port workers on the Pacific coast boasting about how their big wages help "support" 3 jobs.
In reality, it takes 3 jobs TO SUPPORT THEM.
Well, I can certainly understand why they don't want Turkey coming into the EU. Their country of 4-million people would be completely flooded and the culture ripped from its roots if the Turks invaded (and they would).
Depends on how many Latvians they're getting over there, I suppose.
Immigration can be good...in manageable doses...from the right places...distributed evenly.
All too often, all of these conditions are ignored.
Tell me that you're joking. By any chance, have you ever been in Ireland?
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