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Ennis parking woes

MEETINGS are taking place this week between SIPTU officials and union members in Aer Lingus after a proposed agreement was hammered out between the sides at the Labour Relations Commission.

An alternative proposal to outsourc- ing has been developed between SIP- TU and Aer Lingus management in talks held under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission. SIP- TU will be consulting with members in advance of any ballot on the new proposals.

The aim is to complete the process before December 4.

There will be no industrial action

or strike action commenced during the process, but if SIPTU members reject the proposal the union man- date remains live and can be acti- vated if the company proceeds with eo) EL Rolen ner baton

Both sides are remaining cautious about revealing any details of the alternative to the management out- sourcing proposal outside union and company circles, but it’s understood that the LRC recommendations af- ter extensive talks will depend on expectations that many staff will choose to accept voluntary severance packages.

The agreement also presumes that a number will leave the company and return under new pay and cond1-

tions.

Staff who stay on current terms of employment will keep their current pay scales, entitlements, overtime rates, annual holidays and shift al- eee

Based on a review of the operation in Shannon, payroll savings will in- clude an overall 35 per cent reduction in staff with staff being employed on new terms and conditions.

A Shannon Handling Unit will be set up to allocate duties in the cargo and ground handling operation and staff will be required to work flex- ibly.

A pay pause will also be in place until July 2010.

The alternative plan will have to be

given approval by the members be- fore the full threat of a strike action, Jobe] OMOrO LEN (CM ODLMNU elem vel UR inett-MOE-RVoll period, can be ruled out.

Meanwhile, there have been sug- gestions that the company may be looking at returning the Heathrow service to Shannon.

Company chairman, Colm Bar- rington, said in a letter to Clare County Council that if the airline can get its cost base right at Shannon and generate sufficient passenger num- bers “we will be prepared to consider PNOMVanepes toa

Recent figures from Belfast show that passenger numbers on the route are falling behind what they had at Shannon by 27 per cent.

POLES and other non-nationals who came to Clare with great hopes of the Celtic Tiger are heading home.

While many are leaving because they find it difficult to get jobs, re- ports are emerging of non-nationals being let go out of turn while Irish employees are being kept.

Orla Ni Eili of the Immigrant Sup- port Centre in Ennis says that she has heard reports of foreign nationals be-

ing let go in this way.

“These are not formal complaints, but we have heard about it. A number of foreign nationals working in the country have said they were let go despite the fact that there were Irish people employed after them.”

Ms Ni Eili said she has been trying to get people to tell her which em- ployers are using this practice “but I haven’t been able to find out. I im- agine it’s because people feel quite powerless in these situations”.

The claims come as Mayor of Clare, Madeleine Taylor Quinn stresses that “people must be treated equally, re- gardless of their nationality”’.

She was addressing last week’s Polish Independence Day celebra- tions in Kilrush. The recession, she said, “is areal test of our society; how genuine we are in difficult times”.

At the height of the building boom, there were 2,000 Polish people living in Kilrush and surrounding areas, the Mayor said, but she added that figure

has since dwindled. Ms Ni Eli has anoticed a big rise in the number of foreign nationals eager to repatriate.

“A lot have gone and others are planning to go after Christmas. I think it’s the case that immigra- tion to Ireland was a chain process, where people who came here and found work was plentiful told their friends and family at home. Now that scenario 1s working in the opposite way, she said.

Lithuanian state agencies targeted

fellow citizens working in Ireland with jobs fairs in Dublin and Mona- ghan at the weekend.

The events were being hosted by the by the Lithuanian Ministry of Social Security and Labour under the title ‘Saddle Up Your Horses’.

“With the Irish jobs market shrink- ing, many Lithuanians are consider- ing the option of returning home. Three thousand job vacancies were on offer,” a spokesman for the event said.

MENINGITIS B remains the most common strain of the virus in Clare, despite the almost complete eradica- tion of Meningitis C thanks to vac- CHT IBCeyEF

While welcoming the news that there has been no cases of Meningi- tis C in the county since 2002, the Meningitis Trust said people must remain vigilant when it comes to the other bacterial form of the disease – Meningococcal B more commonly called meningitis B.

As many as 19 cases of the strain were reported in the mid west in 2006, with almost 150 cases notified from 1999 to 2006. There have been no deaths from this strain of menin- gitis in the mid west since 2003 when three patients died.

According to Geraldine Mills from the Meningitis Trust there have been more than 200 cases of Meningococ- cal disease notified since 1999 in the mid west region, including Clare Die e-rC Me blyoe-lae

Of those who survive meningitis, it is estimated that 15 to 20 per cent

can be left with mild to severe after- effects, including deafness, epilepsy, and behavioural problems amongst others. Where septicaemia has oc- curred, scarring and amputation can also be an after-effect.

Meningitis can strike in an in- Stant, but the effects can last a life- time according to the Trust. People are asked to be on the look out for early symptoms which can easily be mistaken for those of flu and include fever, headache, stiff neck, dislike of bright light, drowsiness, joint pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, confusion and in some, but not all cases, a rash. Symptoms can appear in any order and some may not appear at all.

Carole Nealon, General Manager of the Trust, said “With Winter upon us, it is all the more important to err on the side of caution, be aware of the signs and symptoms of meningi- tis, and seek medical attention as a matter of urgency if you suspect the Chere ional

The Meningitis Trust has a special 24 Hour nurse-led helpline that peo- ple can ring with any concerns. The number is 1800 523 196.

MEMBERS are this month celebrat- ing the 10th anniversary of the Can- tare Chamber Choir.

Formed by a group of friends who shared a love of singing, the Ennis based choral group have been regu- lar performers at numerous charity and community based events in the last decade.

The choir took its name from the Italian expression ‘Cantare’ which means ‘a love to sing’.

“That’s exactly what we are all about,’ explained choir director Geraldine Bradley, “Everyone in the group had a real love of singing. We’ve really enjoyed performing over the past ten years.”

That love of singing is reflected in the wide range of songs that can be heard at the group’s weekly rehears-

als in the St Peter and Paul Cathe- dral, Ennis.

“We sing anything really, from ren- aissance music right up to modern stuff,’ said Geraldine.

If you’ve attended a fundraiser in Ennis anytime in the last decade, then chances are that you’ve seen a performance by Cantare.

From supporting organisations like the Samaritans and Clare Haven to opening the Ennis Book Club Festi- val, the choir has always been keen to Support community themed events.

“We are very much a community based choir. We only enter the odd competition. Our main focus has al- ways been on supporting community based events,’ said Geraldine.

She added, “Last year we _ per- formed at the Christmas concert for the Samaritans. We’ve done the Mental Health Association concert,

which was in October. We were part of the 50th anniversary celebrations for the Poor Clares and we performed in the Cathedral when Cardinal Sean Brady was in Ennis”.

The big date on the calendar this year for the 14 members of Cantare is December 14, when, along with the Ennis Cathedral Choir and the Colaiste Muire Choir, the group will perform in the Cathedral at a special mass for Clare Haven.

Cantare also enjoy close links with the other groups and musicians in Ennis’s musical community.

“There are a lot of choirs in Ennis and I think that shows how much of an interest there is in music. We’ve performed with a lot of instrumen- talists and young talented musicians. Albert Hogan played with us. Fiona Walsh from the Ennis Gospel Choir has helped us out. Michael Hennessy

and his piano group have played with us. It’s a community effort,’ said Geraldine.

Cantare have performed at events outside Clare, in Enniscorthy and Limerick and Geraldine is hopeful that the group will get the opportu- nity to do so again.

After Christmas, the next big con- cert for Cantare takes place in March. “We normally break for the summer, with people going away and all that,” explained Geraldine.

And, as Geradine was keen to stress, new members are always wel- fey salen

THREE east Clare fire-fighters were among a group who were honoured for their long and heroic service last week.

At the sixth National Long Service Awards ceremony, held at the Red Cow Moran Hotel in Dublin, 20-year service awards were presented to Joe Moloney (retired Sub Officer), Dav- id Culloo (Sub Officer) and Martin Tuohy (Station Officer) of Scarriff Fire Brigade. Meanwhile, Kilrush Station Officer Martin Cahill re-

ceived a Long Service Award for 30 years of service to Clare County Fire and Rescue Service.

Congratulating the recipients, Min- ister of State and Clare T.D. Tony Killeen said, “the awards are a ges- ture of the appreciation of the people of Clare for the magnificent work these fire service personnel have done throughout their careers, which has helped all of us feel safer in our homes.”

“Significantly, the ceremony is also the State’s way of expressing its grat- itude for the huge contribution they

have made towards the security of its citizens,” he added.

Mr Killeen – who is a former Min- ister of State, with special responsi- bility for the fire service – praised the commitment and professionalism of the long serving fire fighters

“The service indicative of the high- ly experienced personnel employed by Clare County Fire and Rescue Service.”

Minister Killeen also offer effusive praised the Fire Services Council, which hosts the awards ceremony each year.

“The council, through its central training programme, continues to provide command and control train- ing for all officer ranks and specialist training in responding to road traffic accidents, hazardous materials inci- dents and command and control for ship fire-fighting while in port.

“The council also provides appro- priate courses in fire safety engineer- ing for suitably qualified fire service personnel. This suite of training courses supplements the training provided locally within fire authori- ties’, he said.

Post Office Field is people’s park

THE benefits of pre-clearance are:

For passengers: It will save time and potentially save money.

e Shannon and Dublin are the only European airports that will have full pre clearance facilities on offer to passengers.

e The US currently has no plans to introduce pre-clearance elsewhere in Europe.

e Once the new pre-clearance fa- cilities are in place US bound pas- sengers out of Shannon and Dublin airports will have uninterrupted pas- sage through US airports on arrival. e All customs, US immigration and agriculture clearance will now be completed before passengers leave Ireland.

e Flights from Shannon and Dublin airports will be treated like domes- tic flights in the US. Passengers will have no need to undergo further time consuming checks in any US air- jour

e Passengers will now be able to

check their baggage through from Shannon and Dublin to their final destination in the US even if this involves two flights with different airlines.

¢ Domestic airports are generally cheaper for airlines to use and this should be reflected in the ticket price – meaning potentially cheaper flights for customers.

For airlines: Faster aircraft turnaround which saves money.

e Transatlantic airlines using Shan- non and Dublin will now be able to fly into less congested and less ex- pensive domestic terminals at US airports. This means easier access to aircraft stands thereby minimis- ing the time between touchdown and passengers exiting the aircraft.

e Airlines will now also be able to offer passengers easily accessible on- ward connections.

For Shannon Airport and the mid- west region:

Shannon will be the first airport in Ireland to offer full pre clearance

facilities. This will give the airport authority a unique selling point in its marketing campaigns to attract new airlines to service the airport.

e The introduction of pre-clearance will be particularly useful in the ef- forts of Shannon Airport to retain and promote transatlantic services.

e Pre-clearance will provide the op- portunity to promote the mid-west region for high worth tourism from the US with the strong selling point that on the return leg all US clear- ance requirements would be dealt with before departure.

e Pre-clearance has the potential to Open up other economic benefits for the Shannon region particularly for firms dependent on the US market.

For private aircraft:

e Pre-clearance is also being intro- duced at Shannon for private US bound aircraft. Shannon will be the only airport in Europe to offer this service to private aircraft owners.

e Shannon can expect a significant increase in private aircraft landing to avail of the facility.

KILRUSH Superintendent Michael Comyns met with the members of Kilrush Town Council on Thursday last to discuss the future of the Joint Policing Committee (JPC) in the OD e0r

The Kilkee native told the mem- bers that they would drive the suc- cess and workings of the committee as the council makes up the biggest group in the 17 person committee.

JPCs have been set up nationally in accordance with the Garda Siochana Act 2005, which provides for such a committee in each local authority administrative area.

The purpose of these committees is to provide a forum where a local authority and the senior Garda of- ficers responsible for the policing of that area, with the participation of Oireachtas members and community interests, can consult, discuss and make recommendations on matters affecting the policing of the area. It is intended that the committees will be co-operative in nature and will Operate with the minimum of for- mality.

“One of the most important parts of the committee 1s the people from the community and people from the vol- untary organisations. The best thing is to pick from the widest spectrum

such as the youth group and older people,’ the newly appointed super- intendent advised.

“You can only have three from the voluntary and community sector. This is very small for an area like Kilrush so it 1s important to pick from a broad spectrum,” he added.

‘The town council will have a huge influence on the joint policing com- mittee. The biggest thing is that this is not a blame game,” he said.

“Things will go wrong but if every- one pulls together hopefully we will get it right.”

Supt Comyns told the council that the committee can have a huge input into law and order in the town.

“If there is a public premises acting outside the law we can discuss it here and we can send someone from the joint police committee to object to the licence,” he said.

While most committees are to be made up of three Oireachtas mem- bers, Kilrush will have just one due to the number of TDs in the constitu- ency.

Councillor Christy O’Malley (FF) pointed out to the meeting however that none of the four TDs in Clare could be considered local to west OE cer

The cost of this new committee is to be borne by the council and it must hold a public meeting once a year.

IF YOU don’t employ a dedicated ac- countant, a designated person within your company may wish to under- take some training in the area. The ICAI runs subsidised business skills courses relevant for start-ups in con- junction with Government-sponsored training body, Skillnet.

These operate under the name “SME Growth Skillnet” and ICAI members and non-members can at-

tend. Basic Bookkeeping — Part One takes seven hours and takes students through the bookkeeping cycle from source documentation to preparing a trial balance. Next comes Basic Bookkeeping — Part Two, also last- ing seven hours. This module builds on part one and explains how to prepare financial statements from the trial balance. There is a shorter course too (3.5 hours) called Finan- cial Awareness for Administrators aiming to “dispel the mystery of fi-

nancial jargon” and explain the prin- ciples of business finance.

The Institute is also holding con- ferences 1n Dublin, Cork and Gal- way throughout November entitled ‘Members in Business”. The goal of the one-day events is to provide participants with key updates in im- portant areas of Financial Reporting, Tax and Commercial Law, as well as other topical issues. The cost of at- tending is €500, less 10 per cent for ICAI members.