asked the Minister for Transport and Power if he has given any instructions or issued any policy directives to Bord na Móna as to the manner in which they should conduct personnel negotiations with trade unions; if he is satisfied with the present negotiating machinery between the representatives of Bord na Móna and the trade unions concerned; and if he will give an indication of any steps which he has taken to improve relationships between the parties referred to.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Bord na Móna Union Negotiations.
6.
The conduct of personnel negotiations with trade unions is, under sections 15 and 17 of the Turf Development Act, 1946, the statutory responsibility of Bord na Móna. No ministerial instructions or policy directives as to the manner in which they should conduct personnel negotiations with trade unions have been issued to the Board.
The Board has a long history of satisfactory relations with the trade unions and until this year there has never been an official strike in the Board. The two official strikes which took place this year and the present manual workers' dispute have all been the subject of Labour Court hearings and subsequent recommendations in favour of the Board.
The existing negotiating machinery of which Labour Court hearings and recommendations are an essential part has operated satisfactorily and I am unaware of any demand for an improvement in it. If such a demand were to arise, the matter would be one for consideration by the Minister for Labour. I should say in this regard that in a communication sent to all State companies for which I am responsible after the Minister for Labour was appointed, I asked for information on how far industrial relations, on the most modern basis, had been promoted. This information was duly conveyed to the Minister for Labour.