Derry Trades Union Council to host Know Your Rights workshop to advise struggling workers

The online event will take place on Tuesday evening at 8pm.

It will be addressed by Susan Parlour, of the National Education Union, Ruairi O’Sandair, of the Northern Ireland Public Service Alliance (NIPSA), Goretti Horgan, of the University and College Union, and Niall McCarroll of Unison.

Mr. McCarroll, who is also the chair of the DTUC, said: “Workers have been on the frontlines everyday of the pandemic keeping us safe and making sure vital services remain available.

“But workers have also seen their safety, health, pay and redundancy rights undermined while furlough schemes and benefits are inadequate and hard to access. This is why trade unions are essential to protect rights and give workers a voice.

“Rightly, the main focus during the ongoing public health emergency is saving lives and protecting each other. However, the focus of many bosses in Derry is to use this current crisis to get rid of certain workers, restructure departments, lay workers off, cut pay, reduce workers hours whilst protecting their interests and lifestyles.”

Mr. McCarroll said the position of workers on ‘zero hours’ and other insecure contracts was particularly precarious despite many of these workers being on the coalface of keeping supplies open during the pandemic.

“The ongoing public health emergency has laid bare the types of jobs local workers have to endure and the pressures they are under to keep those jobs and the precarious and insecure nature of employment,” said the local trade union leader.

The workshop will be streamed live on the DTUC Facebook profile: https://www.facebook.com/derrytrades.unioncouncil/

Mr. McCarroll said: “Local workers who are organised and in a trade union have been protected against local capitalist practices and fight on, together.

“The DTUC Know Your Rights workshop on Tuesday evening at 8pm, provides all workers with an opportunity to gain some knowledge around workplace issues and be prepared to face down the increasing pressures being witnessed by local workers and their families.”