Fórsa members at Oberstown to resume strike action

Members of the Fórsa trade union employed at Oberstown Children Detention Campus in Dublin are to stage a three-day strike from Monday, 5 October, in an escalation of their dispute over staffing levels.

Industrial action had been paused following talks at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) in August but Fórsa has accused Oberstown management and the Department of Children, Disability and Equality of failing to honour the agreement that was reached.

Fórsa official Deirdre O'Connell said the failure to fully implement the WRC agreement, and a subsequent failure to engage with the union on the issue, had undermined its members confidence in the process, and left the issues at the heart of the dispute - including safe staffing levels and resourcing at the campus - unresolved.

"The escalation to a 72-hour work stoppage reflects the seriousness of the situation and the absence of meaningful progress in resolving the dispute," Ms O'Connell said.

"This action is being resumed because commitments made at the WRC have not been fully honoured."

"Our members paused their industrial action in good faith to allow space for agreement, but that goodwill has not been reciprocated," she added.

Fórsa said it remains available for meaningful talks but also reserves the right to issue notice of further or continued escalation of industrial action if the matter remains unresolved.

Oberstown management and the Department of Children have been contacted for comment.

Oberstown has previously said it that has taken a proactive approach to strengthening staffing, and that there has been a fall in all recorded campus incidents.