@WallisFashion Workers strike in #Ireland
Channel: Union Solidarity International
Date: 2013-10-18

Mandate Website: Workers in the Wallis retail outlet on Grafton Street in Dublin are set to take industrial action this morning at 9am (Wednesday, 16th October 2013).

The workers balloted for industrial action in support of 17 of their Limerick colleagues who have been locked out of employment for more than three weeks. Last night, Wallis workers in the Blanchardstown store also balloted for supportive industrial action.

Arcadia Group -- the owner of Wallis, along with Miss Selfridge, Dorothy Perkins, Evans and Burtons -- made the workers in Limerick compulsorily redundant but reneged on a long standing redundancy agreement with their staff. This is despite Arcadia Multiples Ireland Ltd paying €92million to their UK owners in 2012.

Management are also refusing to compensate workers for loss of earnings following the restructuring of the company and are unwilling to attend the Irish state's mechanisms for resolving industrial disputes, the Labour Relations Commission (LRC).

Staff in the Grafton Street store balloted for industrial action last week and have subsequently been told the Grafton Street store will also cease trading this Saturday.

Mandate Trade Union is condemning the 'callous and provocative' actions of the company saying that their refusal to engage is an aggressive attack on their own workforce.

Brendan O'Hanlon, Mandate Divisional Organiser said, "It is clear this multinational retailer has no empathy with its staff whatsoever. We currently have 17 loyal workers in Limerick -- with a combined service of 240 years -- effectively locked out of their employment for the past three weeks. They're fighting so that their company will abide by their own agreements which they freely entered into," he said.

"Frustratingly, the company is refusing to attend the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) and it would seem they're happier to leave their loyal workers out on the streets rather than attempt to achieve a resolution to this dispute," added Mr O'Hanlon.

Mandate has written to the company informing them of the union's intention to picket the Grafton Street store. The union has also informed the company of the intention to picket the Jervis Street store once the Grafton Street store closes on Saturday and has also warned that the dispute could escalate to other stores.

"Our members will not be broken by this company. We have members in all of the Arcadia brands and they're all fully aware that this attack on the Wallis workers' entitlements is an attack on their entitlements too," said Mr O'Hanlon.

"As always, Mandate and our members are committed to a mature resolution of this dispute and are available to attend the Labour Relations Commission at the company's convenience," Mr O'Hanlon concluded.