Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 15 January 2019
935. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his views on whether coastguard volunteers should have access to a national representative body to advocate for and represent their interests. [1274/19]
View answerThe IRCG is very keen to ensure the views of volunteers are heard and taken into account as they are a vital part in the development and delivery of the Search and Rescue service.
As the Deputy will understand, there is no representative union structure which they can access at a national level since they are not employees per se. However, there is already an existing body in place called the Coastal Unit Advisory Group (CUAG) which is made up of six members elected by the Units independently of management. The purpose of this group is to represent the views of all the Units. The six members are selected on a geographical basis and serve for a period of three years. At all times there should be representation from a coastal search, a boat and a cliff unit. The CUAG meets regularly with the national Volunteers Manager and annually with the IRCG Director. Additional meetings can be called by CUAG or management as necessary.
In addition to this, there are a variety of other avenues through which volunteers raise concerns and advocate their views on issues. These include regular "Sector meetings" in which the IRCG's Coastal Unit Sector Manager for the particular area facilitates an open forum for the volunteers to raise issues. There are also Technical Advisory Committees (TAC’s) with volunteer representation to adviceIRCG management on various technical matters such as personal protective equipment.
In 2019, IRCG also plan to meet with the units on a national basis 3 times a year which, coupled with the sector meetings, will provide additional opportunities for interaction and communication with Coast Guard management.
