I’ve received a copy of the resignation letter of David Joyce, Congress Equality Officer and ICTU representative on the board of the Equality Authority.

In the letter the impact of the 43% on the budget of the authority combined with the refusal of the Minister to meet with the board to discuss their proposals for the organisation are cited as the primary reasons for his resignation.

I acknowledge that we are in an unprecedented situation regarding the public finances and would have been more than willing to engage constructively and in a spirit of partnership to work through the difficulties in an attempt to use limited resources as effectively as possible in order to ensure a credible Equality Authority. However, your refusal to meet with the full board and the unilateral decisions taken by your department on these issues and failure to engage seriously with the management plan developed by the board before Christmas has sent a clear signal that this was not your intention. It also runs counter to your earlier commitment in the Dail that agencies under your remit could continue to carry out their core functions.

Joyce also cited the move to an inaccessible building in Roscrea and removal of corporate memory and expertise due to decentralisation and budget cuts and reduction in ability of the authority to provide information to the public on their rights. However his major concern was the impact of the cuts on the legal section of the authority and the inability to support new cases or commence inquiries.

I’ve included the full text below the jump.

Dear Minister Ahern,

It is with great regret that I write to you to tender my resignation as a board member of the Equality Authority. It has been my great privilege to serve as a board member since 2007, however it is my view that the wholly disproportionate 43% budget cut and subsequent staff reduction along with the accelerated decentralisation of the head office to a wholly inaccessible and unsuitable site in Roscrea render the Authority ineffective in carrying out its core functions of promoting equality and combating discrimination.

While sharing the concerns that sparked the resignation of Niall Crowley, I have held off on making my decision until having the opportunity to consider the business plan presented to the Board by the senior management team on 15th January. While the staff have gallantly attempted to present a work programme that would enable the Authority to continue its core functions within the framework of the budget cuts and the loss of corporate memory that will inevitably follow the move to Roscrea, it is my view that the resultant business plan for 2009 is a pale imitation of the strong independent advocate for equality that the Authority has been since its inception. Apart from the huge reductions in the capacity of the public information centre to respond to queries about peoples’ rights, the major reduction in research, and the cutting back of the development section and all of its important work in promoting compliance and good practice in Irish workplaces (many of which are committed to in Towards 2016), my major concern is the impact all of this will have on the capacity of the Authority’s legal section (whose budget for 2009 is substantially committed) to carry out its important work. This includes:

• Providing legal advice and representation to individual claimants under the Employment Equality Acts, Equal Status Acts and Intoxicating Liquor Act in accordance with criteria established and kept under review by the Board

• Taking cases under the equality legislation in the name of the Equality Authority in accordance with criteria established and kept under review by the Board

• Conducting inquiries (Congress has requested two inquiries to be carried out – into the use of agency workers as a means of circumventing equality legislation and into the position of people with intellectual disability in sheltered workshops.)

Having considered the discussion at the board on the 15th I have come to the conclusion that all of this work will be hugely compromised. It is likely that the criteria for taking cases will have to be significantly revised to make resources the overriding factor in deciding to take cases. Consequently, the Authority will not be in a position to take on any new cases in 2009 and the prospect of conducting its first inquiry is even more remote than ever. During a very difficult economic period for the country where cases of discrimination are likely to increase, this is a wholly unacceptable scenario. It also creates an area of significant potential corporate liability for the Authority in terms of having to refuse new cases or withdrawing from some of its existing caseload.

I acknowledge that we are in an unprecedented situation regarding the public finances and would have been more than willing to engage constructively and in a spirit of partnership to work through the difficulties in an attempt to use limited resources as effectively as possible in order to ensure a credible Equality Authority. However, your refusal to meet with the full board and the unilateral decisions taken by your department on these issues and failure to engage seriously with the management plan developed by the board before Christmas has sent a clear signal that this was not your intention. It also runs counter to your earlier commitment in the Dail that agencies under your remit could continue to carry out their core functions.

What has transpired is not in the sprit of the social solidarity pact proposed by Congress. Indeed it is very short-sighted in that Equality could also be a part of our economic recovery. Studies have confirmed a strong link between bottom-line business performance and the use of High Performance Work Systems in the workplace. These include diversity and equality strategies, and flexible working arrangements, linked with a 14.8% growth in productivity.

It is for these reasons that I can no longer serve on a board whose job in my view has been made impossible and hereby tender my resignation.

Yours faithfully

David Joyce
Congress Equality Officer