Dublin Bus Workers And Other Workers Being Forced To Take Annual Leave

Dublin Bus workers and other workers being forced to take annual leave during Covid 19 crisis – effectively stealing their annual holidays

Essential workers should be rewarded not punished and no worker should have their holidays taken off them or be unnecessarily laid-off when wage subsidy scheme due to be established

In a statement, Richard Boyd Barrett TD for People Before Profit has described as “utterly disgraceful” moves by Dublin Bus and other employers to force workers to take their annual leave during the Covid 19 crisis, in a move, which he said “effectively steals workers annual holidays” and represents a real slap in the face to essential workers who are putting their health at risk in order to keep essential services going.”

Deputy Boyd Barrett was contacted by a number of bus workers last night angered by the move and posted their concerns on social media and has since received a flood of messages from other bus workers and workers in other sectors who are being similarly forced to take their annual leave.

Deputy Boyd Barrett has said, he also understands from advice he has received from legal experts and his own understanding of the law, that the moves made by Dublin Bus and other employers may be illegal, as they contravene provisions of the Organisation of Working Time Act.

Under the Act employers are supposed to give workers at least a month’s notice, if they are directing them to take leave, and any such move requires consultation with the workers or their union and is supposed to take into account a workers ability to gain necessary rest and recreation.

Deputy Boyd Barrett said the move by Dublin Bus and other employers to force workers to take their annual leave was not just “grossly unfair” but was counter-productive and “threatens to undermine the huge goodwill and solidarity being shown by the vast majority of workers and members of the public, who are supporting the public health effort to defeat the Covid 19 virus.”

Deputy Boyd Barrett said:

“I really think this a hugely unfair thing to do to essential workers, like bus workers, who are putting their health on the line to keep an essential service going, not least to ensure that our health workers and other front-line essential workers can get work.

“But since I posted the concerns raised with me by bus workers about this on social media, I have also received a flood of messages from other workers who have also been forced to take their annual leave.

“I think it is not right to effectively steal the annual holidays from either essential workers who continue to work for us all, or from workers who are contributing to the public health effort to defeat Covid 19 by staying at home.

“Moves such as this threaten to undermine the huge collective effort, solidarity and good-will being displayed by hundreds and hundreds of thousands of workers and the public in general, who are all contributing in different ways towards defeating the virus and protecting our health services and society.

“It is also my understanding that moves by Dublin Bus and other employers may be illegal and I will be raising the whole issue with the government and writing to Dublin Bus today.”