Labour Court sends Compass Group Ireland pay dispute to conciliation

The Labour Court recommended that Compass Group Ireland and four catering assistants represented by the Services Industrial Professional Technical Union (SIPTU) return to Workplace Relations Commission conciliation over their hourly pay. The recommendation was dated 22 May 2023. The workers sought to restore the gap between their basic hourly pay and the national minimum wage, backdated to 1 January 2023. They sought €2.22 an hour for three workers and €1.22 for the fourth, saying their pay had fallen behind after they transferred to Compass in 2017. Compass said its client-approved labour costs and the workers’ contracts did not support a further increase. It also argued a rise would widen differences between their overall terms and those of other transferred workers. At the hearing, the parties agreed to conciliation, and the Court recommended renewed efforts to reach a mutually acceptable solution.