The Tracks of Our Tears

at

Connolly Station, Dublin this morning

This morning.

How was it for you?

Commuters face second day of rail disruption (RTÉ)

Rollingnews

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44 thoughts on “The Tracks of Our Tears”

  1. postmanpat

    Mortgage free auld lads in their late fifties who shouldn’t be hurting for money, yet are, because of bad lifestyles and poor financial decisions now want more drinking money and don’t care about causing the collapse of the company that employed them for all these years because, worse case scenario, they will get a nice redundancy lump sum and then its only a few more years until a nice €250 a week state pension which will be more than enough to live on because, as I said, mortgage free lads in their fifties. The younger drivers who rent and cant get a mortgage from the bank wont see any of the benefits if the company fold to strikers demands , just like the younger Dublin bus drivers who stood by their auld lad 50/60something comrades a few years ago and lost weeks of wages just to see some old well off baby boomers get what they want, like they always do.

      1. postmanpat

        I’m not involved in any party, young or otherwise and I don’t vote in elections. I’m just saying what I see on the news. A bunch of old greedy men who will snap up any deal that benefits them today even if it leaves their 20 something comrades with no gains and the company teetering on collapse. As I said its a win-win for the old men picketers, a few more years on better pay and then company closure , tens of thousands in redundancy lump sum based on decades of service and then a topped up state pension, cha-ching. They are NOT doing this for the good of their 18-30 year old colleagues. (who will lose their jobs and get little to no redundancy in a few years ,) They are taking another bite from the pie and don’t care about anyone but themselves. By the looks of most of the picketers, they look like they should have retired years ago and given the younger people in this country a chance, they are all overweight rummy nosed mortgage-free baby boomers making a big noise and playing the victim.

      2. Twunt

        ahhh piddle, what is this divide on conquer nonsense. Heavily unionised gits are in it for themselves, they have no solidarity with others, never have, never will.

  3. b

    The bus passed me this morning as it was too full – this was at 6.30am – had to pay 20 quid for a taxi into work

    Great bunch of lads the strikers – face it, this is a privileged group of workers, paid well above average with great conditions and pensions, still got increments over the past 10 years. The unions involved are just interested in feathering their own nests and the cost of the rest of the workforce.

    1. edalicious

      They’ve probably spent so much time giving out about cyclists that they’d lose all face if they ever actually got up on a bike.

  5. Zaccone

    It never ceases to amaze me how many people in the private sector complain tirelessly about the damn unions, getting good pay for their members. The lesson there is not unions are evil, its that if you should make sure you’re unionized so that you too can get a good pay deal.

    Anyone whos not managerial level or a business owner would generally be far better served being in a union.

    1. Rob_G

      This one of the things that lends to the perception that public sector workers aren’t living in the real world:

      Iarnród Éireann is losing money hand over fist, and the workers are going on strike for more money?! If it were a private sector company, they would be replaced by any number of people who would be only delighted to work for the pay and conditions IE workers are on.

        1. Rob_G

          In the current scenario, everyone who takes the train, everyone who is stuck in the increased traffic due to the strike, and the tax payers that are would have to pay the NRBU inflated wage demands, are losing out.

    2. b

      I suppose i could join a union though
      a) If my employer was loss making i won’t get a pay raise regardless
      b) My employer can’t fund my requests with a cheque from the taxpayer
      c) I don’t have the bargaining leverage of being able to shut down the public transport infrastructure for my own benefit

    3. Andrew

      If my private employer is losing money, being in a union won’t make any difference and shouldn’t either. I do agree though, that representation is important .

  7. Jim Bob Julius

    Oh no, people might miss the kick ball.

    Because that is the biggest fallout from this – FFS….

    1. Spud

      Nice attempt at said ‘rail worker’s to strike fear into the soccer loving Joe.
      Why the funk would it be cancelled because of a rail strike?
      People are well capable of making alternative travel

    2. Col

      It’s not the end of the world, but that doesn’t mean it’s not disappointing for someone who bought themselves a ticket and enjoy football (which, by the way, I do not).

    1. Jim Bob Julius

      Don’t take the train so have little to no interest in this strike, my point was that it was highlighted as being relevant – I would say getting to and from work, hospital appointments and business meetings might be a little bit more important. Its the usual lazy media response ”shock horror” some people might miss the possibility of us limping into the play offs or something.

      Contrary to what Shankly said, its not important. At all. It”s a game, employment, health, business, all important.

  10. Joe Small

    One solution is the Labour Court but I understand the NBRU don’t want to go there because they don’t think it will rule in their favour. In my experience public sector unions just ignore Labour Court rulings unfavourable to them anyway but scream bloody blue murder if Management ever tried this. I don’t dislike public sector or semi-state sector unions but the system is rigged in their favour.

    1. Joe Small

      “The company [Irish Rail] is willing to attend the Labour Court, to ensure that there is an opportunity to resolve this pay claim without further loss to customers, employees or the company. It urges trade unions to take the opportunity to refer this pay claim to the Labour Court, as the Court itself has requested.”

      http://www.irishrail.ie/blog/post?a=723

  11. garthicus

    I’m ‘lucky’ as my company paid for a cab for me today to and from work (Skerries to Dun Laoghaire), but there are countless people who are going to miss work or be severely late whose employers won’t be so caring. There has to be a better way than to disrupt an entire transport network.

  12. Bs

    Surprised moyest hasn’t been on here spouting his union loving liberal boo boo nonsense. Unions in this country are like toddlers, they expect unreasonable treatment for workers then stomp their feet and throw a tantrum that ultimately will see them losing their jobs because the company will go under.

  13. painkiller

    Takes me back to 2009 when we were running a 30bn annual budget deficit on account of these irresponsible, greedy pigs – stripping the state and all the while embracing some twisted faux nationalist position.

    I’m in favour of organised labour movements but not when they over-represent as they do in Ireland and run by a bunch of thugs who advocate their cause with complete ignorance of all others and general balance. I mean seriously, compare a Bus Eireann driver and an Aircoach driver – there is no way the Bus Eireann driver should earn more – what with job security and steady terms of employment (in terms of semi-state employer and having union cover), not to mention pension. I would say the Aircoach driver should be paid 30% more for all that – or at least be able to negotiate a daily rate that accounts for the lack of these defined benefits.

    Recent reports that the public sector already earns 40% more than private sector counterparts, and they want more!
    https://extra.ie/business/jobs/40pc-more-public-sector

    The public sector behaves in a very similar manner to the social justice movements – outwardly entitled and resentful to the core. They advance their own cause under the guise of “equality and fairness”. Equality would mean accepting both the upside and downside but that is rarely brought up and they are crafty enough to never disclose their own advantages – and no matter how much they get it will never be enough.

    1. Mysterybeat

      Your argument that the private sector worker should be able to negotiate for better pay because their conditions are less favourable than other people’s are precisely the reason that unions exist.
      Getting rid of unions is not the way to improve the lot of employees.

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