Lunchtime protest planned for outside Minister's office

The action at Mall Road, Monaghan Town is part of the ‘Our Community is Not for Sale’

SIPTU and Fórsa members will stage a socially distanced protest outside Minister for Social Protection, Heather Humphreys, constituency office in Monaghan this lunchtime aimed at highlighting their opposition to alleged plans to privatise these essential community services.

The action at Mall Road, Monaghan Town is part of the ‘Our Community is Not for Sale’ campaign that is demanding an immediate halt to the a government tendering process for private companies to bid for state contracts to run programmes to assist people getting back into the workforce.

Speaking in advance of the protest by local employment services, SIPTU Community Sector Organiser, Peter Glynn, said: “If these tendering processes proceed as planned it will lead to the wholesale privatisation of local employment services. This will see the forcing out of the effective community-based non-profit providers of local employment services.”

Fórsa Assistant General Secretary, Lynn Coffey, said: “These services are needed now more than ever. It’s imperative that the Minister engages directly with the representatives of staff, service providers and service users to ensure the future of local employment services.”