NI Water strike could be 'devastating' for consumers

More than 300 employees of NI Water and NI Water (Alpha) are set to begin industrial action next week in a dispute over pay.

Members of Unite the union will begin a work-to-rule on 10 December, escalating to an all-out strike on 17 December.

In a statement, Unite said the employees are the only civil service workers who have yet to receive a 5% pay increase and £1,500 non-consolidated payment from the 2023-24 tax year.

The union has warned that the impact of industrial action will be "devastating" for consumers.

NI Water said the outstanding pay award for 2023-24 was "a key concern".

A ballot of members of the GMB union will close the end of this week and if they vote similarly, there will be a joint strike action by both unions.

The strike would involve 250 members from Unite and 100 from GMB.

NI Water workers took part in strike action in December 2014 until January 2015 with staff on a work-to-rule and an overtime ban.

A subsequent review stated there was "significant disruption to water supply in parts of Northern Ireland" which "resulted in consumers losing their water supply".

Unite regional officer Joanne McWilliams told BBC News NI that "this time we are going further".

"We are considering going all out," she said. "If that happens we expect the consumer will be hit a lot quicker.

"It will be more devastating because we also have another aspect - we have NI Water (Alpha) who look after the four main treatment plants within Northern Ireland, so we do believe this is going to be devastating for the consumer."

A work-to-rule would mean that employees at NI Water would stick completely to what is stated in the terms of their contract, meaning they would not start earlier or finish later than required.

An overtime ban would prohibit staff working over and above their normal working hours and they would not call out to an emergency.

"We will take all requests for derogation on a case-by-case basis but on the face of it we will be withdrawing our labour," a Unite spokesperson said.

When NI Water last undertook strike action in January 2015, the review found that "loss of water supply occurred for some consumers in an area from Derrygonnelly to Dungiven and from Killeter to Cookstown".

The withdrawal of out-of-hours working meant that faults, which would have been repaired quickly in normal circumstances, resulted in failure or shutdown of some plants, causing consumers to lose their water supply.

Unite has written to finance minister Caoimhe Archibald to seek the approval of the business case for a pay increase due in the 2023-24 fiscal year and to avoid the strike action.

“The minister must act immediately, deliver the 21-month overdue pay increase to our members and end an entirely avoidable and disruptive industrial dispute," McWilliams added.

In a statement, NI Water said: "The outstanding pay award for 2023/24 for our staff is a key concern for NI Water.

"Our partnership agreement with Department for Infrastructure (DfI) requires DfI and Department of Finance (DoF) approval before any payment can be made. While DfI has approved the pay award, it is pending DoF approval.”

A spokesperson for the DoF said: “The further information necessary to progress the approval of the NI Water pay remit was only received on 02 December.

"Officials continue to work at pace to assess the pay remit, which will be approved once the department has had the opportunity to properly scrutinise and is satisfied with the information provided.

"A decision is expected this week."