Philip O’ConnorPresentation to Powering the Future Conference

Lisbon, 12th December 2008

Dublin Employment Pact

• Initiative of Taoiseach’s Office;• Social Partners commitment in

1998 national agreement;• Focus on practical solutions to

development, employment and social inclusion issues;

• Dynamic network of 300 agencies and local interests;

• Focus on research, pilot projects and policy initiatives;

• Innovative approaches to multi-level problem solving;

• Board representative of stautory agencies (education, enterprise), local authorities, social partners, local develop-ment and community sectors.

DEP strategies

Four strategies:

• Dublin wide social inclusion initiatives; Community ICT Programme, Creative Cities Initiative

• Creating access to the labour market; Labour Market Policy, Local Employment Services, Workplace Diversity

Strategies

• Lifelong learning through further education and in-work learning;

Learning at Work Initiative, Skills for Work, Educational Directory for ex-Prisoners

• Innovative enterprise and social economy initiatives;

Social Finance Initiative, Social Enterprise Strategy

Equal at Work

“Access to employment through open human resource practices”

Equal at WorkIrish Context

• Social Partnership: government, employers, unions, farmers and community sector determine economic and social policy at national level;

• Economic Boom: opportunity to achieve labour market inclusion through open HR;

• Equality Acts with legal recourse (nine grounds) and large voluntarist provision.

Equal at WorkRationale of the Development

Partnership

• Strategy: Impact across Dublin Region private, public and community sectors;

• Programme:14 actions across the Private, Health, Local Authority & Community Sectors;

• Sectors themselves identify initiatives for opebning HR structures in their sector;

• Budget 2004-07 of €3m

Equal at WorkTransnational Partnerships

• Joint Dublin-Belfast (city councils, private and public sectors) with focus on diversity management and promoting access by women to non-traditional occupations;

• InterFAIR Alliance with partnerships of city authorities, employment services and NGOs in Budapest, Nuernberg and Madrid, and Training Division of “Solidarnosc” in Masuria Privince, Poland

Equal at WorkProject Structure

• Development Partnership of 55 organisations;• Sectoral “Clusters” of key partners.• Delegated Project Steering Group of Sector reps.,

national organisations and mainstreaming bodies;• Management Team at Dublin Employment Pact;• Formative Evaluation (diagnostic learning) structure

accompanying/correcting project at all stages/levels;• Reporting to National Support Structure and

Department of Enterprise, Trade & Employment;

Equal at WorkDP Steering Group

Equal at WorkSectoral Cluster Structure

• Mixed organisations: agencies, companies and relevant NGOs;

• Facilitated by DEP and chaired by sectoral mainstreaming organisations (integrated from the start), i.e.;– Private sector – Chartered Institute of Personnel Devpt. Local

authroities – Local Govt. Management Services Board– Health partners – Health Sector Employers Agency/HSE– Community Sector – Sector networks (e.g. NWCI, INOU etc.)

Health Sector Actions• Mainstreaming agencies: Health Service Executive

HR Directorate, HSE Employers Agency;• Process: Working through hospital partnership

committee and engaging all management and staff.• Actions:

– St James’s: Equality Review of recruitment processes.– Children’s Hospital: “Universal Accessibility” audit.– Connolly: Intercultural teamworking.  – Stewarts’: Equality Review of all HR policies for staff (1,800

and 29 nationalities). – Tallaght: Supports for older workers to remain in work.

Health Sector

Launch of the “Support Services for Older Workers Initiative” at Tallaght Hospital by the Hospital Board and Partnershjip Committee, 2006

Private Sector Actions• Mainstreaming body: Chartered Institute of

Personnel Development (CIPD);• Process: Working through workplace partnership

committee and engaging all management and staff.• Actions:

– Eircom: Online HR decision-making for line managers. – Educat. Building Society: Disability Awareness Strategy. – Irish Life: Recruitment /integration disability audit. – Jurys Inns: Inclusive recruitment/integration strategy. – Meteor Mobile: Equality Review of all HR policies.

Private Sector

• Elaine McGauran, Equality Officer, Irish Life & Permanent, with some of the team awarded for excellence by Her Excellency President Mary McAleese at the )2 Ability Awards, 2007

• Publications and reports analyse innovative project outcomes –

• Analysis of the Equality Reviews implemented in five major employments under Equal at Work

Local Authority Actions

• Mainstreaming body: Local Government Management Services Board (LGMSB);

• Process: Working through local authority partnership committee to engaging with management and staff.

• Actions: – Dublin City Council: Accessible competency recruitment

and replacement of formal qualification. – South Dublin County Council: Recruitment of Travellers

to integrated outdoor workteams. School support programme clerical officer placements and jobs .

• Breakthrough achieved with Traveller Employment Initiative in South Dublin County Council:

• National initiative launched by Ministerail Order throughout Irish local authorities based on the South Dublin model.

Local authorities

Launch of Interview Skills Pack by Dublin City Manager John Tierney

Community Sector Actions

  Mainstreaming body: Trade Unions, Employer Body, creation of new mainstreaming body.

• Process: Networking community sector, working in alliance with unions, employers and government.

• Actions: – Increasing TU membership: New sector branches

established, shop stewards trained and engagement with national partnership structures commence.

– Capacity building: Establisg “Community Sector Employers Forum” and “Employers Resource Bureau”, a web-based HR resource tool for sector organisations.

– Changing national framework: Engaging with Social Partnership structure to change funding rules in the sector

Community Sector

• New research by Equal at Works reveals the extent of the Community Sector and the chaotic HR conditions often prevailing.

• Project aims to bring the

sector – which is a larger employer than agriculture – into the modern system of Social Partnership

Organising the Community Sector: Equal at Work representatives with David Begg, general sectratary, Irish Congress of Trade Unions

Community Sector

Launch of the Employers Resource Bureau, Croke Park, 2007

Seeking to influence public opinion and public policy

Evaluation• Self Evaluation:

– Clusters determine own strategies within DP context;

– Open technology workshops for critical assessment;

• Formative Evaluation:– Independent outside company;– Non-summative approach;– Accompanies and corrects project;– System of project “diagnostic learning”;

Evaluation Report

Available at www.dublinpact.ie

Mainstreaming successes Health Sector (through HSE):

- Intercultural workteams system adopted nationally;- Equality Audit of HR systems as best practice;- Older works and universal accessibility models.

Private Sector (through CIPD):- Pioneer diversity strategies adopted by CIPD network;

Local Authority Sector (through LGMSB):- Government Order replaces formal education requirements and

advises competency recruitment in all local authorities;- Traveller Employment model now in six local authorities;

Community Sector (through national partnership and new bodies):- Community Sector branches in two major unions (Siptu/Impact);- Set up Community Sector Employers Forum and HR resource;- Community Sector funding now part of national partnership talks.

• Employment Minister with DEP Staff at their stand showcasing Equal at Work publications

www.dublinpact.ie