(Press Release: 23rd January 2012)
SIPTU has welcomed an agreement between the union and the Department of Social Protection which has prevented the closure of the award-winning National Disabled Angling Facility in Aughrim, Co Wicklow.
A deal was reached on Friday (20th January) which will see all 23 jobs retained at the facility run by "Aughrim Tidy Towns Ltd", a not-for-profit company that sponsors a Community Employment (CE) scheme whose participants maintain the project’s four acre lake within an eight acre riverside park.
“It is great news that an agreement has been reached between SIPTU and Department of Social Protection officials which will see this vital facility funded until a national review of CE schemes is completed in late March,” said SIPTU Community Sector Organiser, Eddie Mullins.
“This agreement follows a meeting last week between Minster for Social Protection Joan Burton and a high level Congress delegation, which included General Secretary David Begg and SIPTU General President Jack O’Connor.”
“At that meeting the Minister gave a commitment that no project would close prior to the completion of a review of all CE schemes. I would reiterate the advice following that meeting that any scheme which is in financial difficulty should immediately contact its union representative so discussions can be initiated with the relevant government officials,” Eddie Mullins added.
No comments:
Post a Comment