STAFF NOTICES Eoin Griffin
Brendan O’Hanlon
Tara Keane
Jonathan Hogan
Moves to Industrial Officer role
Leaving Mandate
Moves to Divisional Organiser role
Moves to National Co-ordinator role
Eoin Griffin started working with Mandate in February 2014. He initially worked as the Organiser attached to the Midlands Division. More recently he has been working in both the Western and North and West Divisions. He takes up the role of Industrial Official in the Dublin North West Division, working with Divisional Organiser Keith Pollard and Organiser Sandra Stapleton.
Congratulations to Brendan O’Hanlon on his recent appointment to Assistant General Secretary, in IMPACT Trade Union. Brendan was a SIPTU shop steward in Marks and Spencer, Mary Street, Dublin before his appointment to Divisional Organiser in Mandate Trade Union 19 years ago. In Brendan’s near two decades of service with Mandate Trade Union, he proved himself to be an excellent and diligent official and a very effective advocate on behalf of Mandate members. Brendan will be missed by all Mandate members and his colleagues and we wish him every success in his new role in IMPACT as he fights for and defends the rights of public service workers.
Congratulations to Tara Keane who has recently been promoted to the position of Divisional Organiser based in the Dublin office. Tara worked for the clothing store La Senza and on its closure joined Mandate for two years as an organiser before moving to an Industrial Officer position for a further two years in the Dublin North West Division. Tara told Shopfloor: “I think coming from retail and working through all grades in the union gives you a fantastic understanding of our members’ needs. I’m truly excited about the future of Mandate and genuinely looking forward to working with our activists and members to advance this union even further.”
Jonathan Hogan has now been appointed as the new National Co-ordinator for Education Training. and Jonathan is another solid trade union activist, cutting his teeth as an effective shop steward in Superquinn (now SuperValu) before being appointed Division Organiser based in Dublin where he led one of Mandate’s largest Divisions. There is no doubt that Jonathan has the commitment and ability to take the training centre to the next level and we all eagerly await the new 2018 training programme which will again offer free and relevant training to all Mandate members.
THERE’S A NEW WAY TO JOIN OR PAY your dues www.joinmandate.ie
OUR new web portal ALSO allows existing members to switch their payment method
Illustration: Daniel Huntley (CC BY-SA 2.0) 8
NEWS
Have your say in Heatons/Sports Direct survey THE current national agreement between Heatons/Sports Direct and Mandate expires at the end of February when talks are due on a follow-up deal. In advance of these talks, a survey of all Heatons/Sports Direct Mandate members is planned and will be launched early in the New Year. Divisional Organiser Bill Kelly told Shopfloor: “This survey is an important chance for all members in this company to have their say and tell the negotiating team which issues are most important to them in the forthcoming discussions. It’s important that everyone takes part in the survey.” In the survey completed before the last discussions took place, the membership set as a priority – second only to pay – the lack of notice of rostered working hours. Mr Kelly said: “Many complained that the lack of notice made it impossible to plan anything such as doctor appointments etc. Some progress was made in discussions and earlier this year the company started a pilot scheme for a fortnightly roster in two stores which was recently extended to a further five stores.” He continued: “Between the pay increases achieved, the clause that guarantees Mandate members the same
average hours on a year-on-year basis, the creation of additional roles and review of low hour contracts which has improved the contracts of more than 200 members, the union has through the current agreement succeeded in improving income levels of workers throughout the company.” It is understood the company has informed Mandate that they have paid out significantly more through the Sales Incentive Scheme than in the last 12 months of Heatons’ ownership. However, Mandate has raised the issue that not all members have an equal chance to earn from the scheme due to a lack of non-sports Heatons products. Mr Kelly said: “The guarantee that no store will earn less than the last 12 months of Heatons ownership continues until the end of February and we will continue to raise this issue with the company.” He added: “I would encourage all colleagues to join Mandate now so that they will have the right to express their views directly to us through the survey in the New Year. Application forms are available from your shop steward or at JoinMandate.ie is an easy, modern way to join which only takes a few minutes using your smartphone or computer.” SHOPFLOOR
y December 2017