Fórsa warns driver testers at risk as Road Safety Authority fails to provide insurance verification system
Fórsa trade union members working as driver testers in the Road Safety Authority (RSA) have voted in favour of taking industrial action, with 95% voting in favour with a turnout of 83%.
The issue concerns the employer’s failure to ensure that driver testers are fully and unconditionally covered by the State Claims Agency while carrying out their duties.
In addition, the insurance verification system leaves driver testers at risk when carrying out their work. At present there is no way to verify whether vehicles presented for driving tests are fully insured, and therefore driver testers are may not be fully indemnified.
The union said the absence of a proper insurance verification system, combined with inadequate indemnity protections, has left staff exposed and under pressure to proceed with tests in circumstances that would be unacceptable in any other area of public service.
Engagement at the WRC will take place on Tuesday 20th January, following a joint referral made by the parties in December.
Fórsa official Ruairí Creaney said: “The ballot result demonstrates that members want this issue resolved once and for all. We will raise their concerns at the WRC later this month and from there we will determine the next steps.”
He continued: “What’s for certain is that the current situation cannot continue. Driver testers cannot be expected to get into vehicles to do their jobs when they have no clarity on whether the vehicle is uninsured. We need a straightforward guarantee of indemnity for driver testers, and a proper insurance verification system. Access to the National Insurance Database can be addressed by the Minister for Transport and we’re calling on him to look at this issue urgently.”
Philip Lambert, Fórsa branch chairperson and a driver tester in Dún Laoghaire, added: “Workers should be protected at work, not put in harm’s way. It’s simply unacceptable that we would be expected to ‘prove negligence’ in the event of an accident at work in order to be protected. Everyone deserves to be able to do their job with safety and confidence.”
A memo issued by RSA management to driver testers in December confirmed that staff are not automatically covered by the State Claims Agency if they conduct a test in a vehicle that is not properly insured. Instead, the memo stated that a driver tester would only be covered “in circumstances where he/she could prove negligence on the part of the RSA”, which driver testers regard as a serious and ongoing risk. Fórsa has said management has acknowledged the legitimacy of driver tester concerns but has yet to act.