www.impact.ie

work&lifeISSUE 6 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

MOTHERUNION REP

WORKERCOUNCILLORWe talk to the impressive

IMPACT people who’ve just won council elections.

PLUSCOMMUNITY PROJECTS UNDER PRESSURE

AVOID CAREER BREAK MISTAKESPRICING YOUR EARLY RETIREMENT

TALK YOURSELF INTO A NEW JOBTHE BIG BED & BREAKFAST

ALSO INSIDERETURN TO LEARN. IRELAND’S TOP YOUNG DESIGNERS. ORDNANCE SURVEY MAPPING OUR FUTURE.SURVIVING SUMMER. FINE FISH. GARDENS IN BLOOM. WINONA RYDER. WIN BOOKS. THE WHO. RECESSION-BEATING CRICKET. ALL THE NEWS. YOUR LETTERS. COMPETITIONS.

Win Win Win…

In this issue

1WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

work&&life – Summer/autumn 2009

NEWS

39 PAY STRATEGY

39 INNER CITY LAUNCH

40 EARLY RETIREMENT

40 HEALTH ON BRINK

41 LOCAL GOVERNMENT SHAM

41 EMBARGO RISK

41 TOXIC LEGACY

41 RYAN REPORT

21Put pen topaper and win€50.

37Win a completeset of Crimsonwomen’s fiction

46Enter ourprize quiz and win €100.

47Tell us what you think and win €100.

REGULARS

4 IMPACT PEOPLE

The council worker who’surging his workmates to‘return to learn’.

11 AT YOUR SERVICE

Meet the Ordnance Surveystaff who are mapping ourfuture.

21 YOUR LETTERS

Workplace violence. Youngtrade unionists. Home helpservice.

22 FASHION*TRISH O’MAHONY meets some of Ireland’s top young designers.

26 BE GOOD TO YOURSELFKAREN WARD gets the best out of summer.

28 IN THE KITCHEN

Goin’ fishin’ with MARGARETHANNIGAN.

30 GREEN FINGERS

JIMI BLAKE’s almost relaxingin his summer garden.

MORE REGULARS

32 AT THE MOVIES

Winona Ryder’s career lookslike coming back from thedead.

34 MUSIC

RAYMONDCONNOLLYcelebratesThe Who.

36 BOOKS

Public servant MARY MALONEserves up romance with anedge.

44 SPORT

KEVIN NOLAN on Ireland’s newkings of cricket.

COVER FEATURES

6 COMMUNITY MELTDOWN

Jobs and services aredisappearing as communityprojects come under the axe.NIALL SHANAHAN reports.

13 ELECTED!

BERNARD HARBOR speaks tosome impressive IMPACTpeople who’ve just won councilelections.

16 CAREER BREAK MISTAKESMARTINA O’LEARY says youshould read the small printbefore opting for the publicservice career break scheme.

19 ABOUT MY JOB

Giving good interview is evenmore important when jobs andpromotions are thin on theground.

24 NO MORE CRIMPLENE

The Irish B&B experience has transcended the stereotypes.

42 DOES EARLY RETIREMENT ADD UP?COLM RAPPLE says you needto look at your finances beforeclearing your desk.

*Fashion pic shows work by designer Yvonne Fleming, finalist in Nokia Young Fashion Designer Awards 2009.

2

Lighter touchTHERE’S BEEN a lot of bad news since the last issue of Work & Life. A draconian new recruitment and promotions embargo, early retirement schemes that will put more pressure on staff and services later in the year, and the April budget (ouch!). In our main feature, we’ve talked to IMPACT members in the community sector, who are already feeling the pain of job losses on top of everything else.

Two of our features – on workplace rights and your money – alert readers to some of the potential downsides of talking early retirement or incentivised career breaks. You might think this is a bad time to be thinking about changing jobs, but our careers pages point out that it’s more important than ever to excel if you’re invited to an interview. We have some tips for success.

But it’s not all doom and gloom. Our cover feature congratulates some of the IMPACT members who successfully ran for office in the recent local elections. And we look at how public services and employment rights issues may fare in the new European Parliament. Other interesting IMPACT people featured include Mick McLoughlin, the council worker who’s promoting adult learning and Amanda O’Hara, the graduate trainee who’s helping Ordnance Survey maintain cutting-edge international standards.

Martina O’Leary surveys the new bed and breakfast scene and reckons you can get quality and value served up with your rashers, while Trish O’Mahony meets some of Ireland’s top young fashion designers (get in early for competitive prices and great design). Meanwhile, Karen Ward has some tips on surviving the long summer. Here’s hoping!

If the future looks too frightening right now, lose yourself in Raymond Connolly’s music piece which celebrates The Who and its front man and regular guy Roger Daltrey. And Morgan O’Brien describes how Winona Ryder is taking her future back after that embarrassing shoplifting business.

Take time to read the regular features: We’ve a great books giveaway, top analysis of the limits to Ireland’s cricket success, summer gardens, and a fishy food feature. Just right for summer. Check out the competitions too!

Work & Life is produced by IMPACT trade union’s Communications Unit and edited by Bernard Harbor.

Front Cover Cathríona Jones and her new baby, Mia. Photo by Conor Healy.

Contact IMPACT at:Nerney’s Court, Dublin 1.Phone: 01-817-1500.Email: rnolan@impact.ie.

Designed by: O’Brien Design & Print Management.Phone: 01 864-1920.Email: nikiobrien@eircom.net.

Printed by Boylan Print Group.

Advertising sales: Frank Bambrick.Phone: 01-453-4011.

Unless otherwise stated, the views contained in Work & Life do not necessarily reflect the policy of IMPACT trade union.

Work & Life is printed on environmentally friendly paper, certified by the European Eco Label. This magazine is 100% recycable.

All suppliers to Work & Life recognise ICTU-affiliated trade unions.

SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

25 years ago On 17th July 1984, workers in the Henry Street Dunnes Stores in Dublin refuse to handle South African produce as a protest against apartheid.

The same month, Captain Beverly Lynn Burns makes history as the first woman to captain the Boeing 747 jumbo jet, commanding trans-continental aircraft 604 from Newark to Los Angeles. She retired in February last year.

55 years ago The ‘shaking hand of Dublin’ Alfie Byrne is re-elected as Lord Mayor for the tenth time on 28th June 1954. He was elected an unprecedented nine times without a break between 1930 and 1939.

On 5th July Dublin Corporation decides against removing Nelson’s Pillar on O’Connell Street.

70 years agoOn 23rd July 1939, Mahatma Gandhi writes a personal letter to Adolf Hitler, addressing him as “my friend,” and seeking to prevent a war. On 1st September a state of emergency is declared in Ireland. The following day, Taoiseach Éamon de Valera tells the Dáil that Ireland will remain neutral in the European War. On 3rd September, the Emergency Powers Act comes into force as Britain and France declare war on Germany.

90 years agoPolicemen in London and Liverpool strike for recognition of the National Union of Police and Prison Officers on 31st July 1919. Over 2,000 strikers are dismissed.

140 years agoMary Ward, a distinguished scientist from County Offaly, is killed when she falls under the wheels of an experimental steam car in 1869. She’s thought to be the world’s first victim of a motor vehicle accident.

work&lifeTHE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

IMPACT is Ireland’s fastest growing trade union with over 61,000 members in the public services and elsewhere.

We represent staff in the health services, local authorities, education, the civil service, the community sector, aviation, telecommunications and commercial

and non-commercial semi-state organisations.

Find out more about IMPACT on www.impact.ie

IMPACT TrAde unIon

WORk & LIFE: THE MAGAzINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS 3

That was then…

Work & Life Magazine is a full participating member of the Press Council of Ireland and supports the Office of the Press Ombudsman. In addition to defending the freedom of the press, this scheme offers readers a quick, fair and free method of dealing with complaints that they may have in relation to articles that appear on our pages. To contact the Office of the Press Ombudsman go to www.pressombudsman.ie or www.presscouncil.ie.

NEWS OF a French court’s decision to award workers’ rights to participants on the local version of ‘reality’ TV show Temptation Island has raised eyebrows in every calf-leather-upholstered TV executive’s office across the globe.

The court awarded the three contestants compensation for unfair dismissal as well as the right to be treated as salaried workers. After a three-year legal battle, each received €11,000 including holiday pay and overtime for having worked 24 hours a day.

In their encounter with ‘reality’ the scantily clad contestants spent 12 days lounging around an island beach near Mexico, with just the odd massage and some provocative dancing to break the ennui. French TV bosses are now concerned that the court ruling will pave the way for legal claims from other ‘reality’ contestants, putting an end to the cheap-as-chips yet lucrative TV genre.

Only in France, you might say. But spare a thought for the contestants of RTÉ’s Fáilte Towers. A much less glamorous affair, it involved a clutch of ‘C’ list celebrities giving their careers the fabled shot-in-the-arm that can, allegedly, come with the ritual humiliation of a ‘reality’ gig.

No beaches or bikinis for this lot, which included Big Brother veteran Brian Dowling (pictured). Contestants were forced to cook, clean and play host to an endless stream of nightmarish hotel guests. In the absence of the minimum wage, it was all done in the name of charity.

The genre has thrived in a decade when we have also seen concerted attempts to erode workers’ rights throughout Europe and the world. As revolutions go, it might be a funny place to start. But let’s hope the spirit of resistance is on the rise l

Liberté, Egalité, Verité, Realité

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Pay this man the minimum wage.

IMPACT people

54 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

IMPACT activist MICK McLOUGHLIN has been quietly encouraging his colleagues to take part in Dublin City Council’s ‘return to learning’ programme, which covers basic reading, writing and IT skills. Over 260 council staff have successfully finished the course since it began eight years ago.

That yearn to learnHow would you describe yourself?Easy going.

What are your interests outside work?Watching sports and reading.

What do you read?My favourite author is Robert Ludlum, the Born Identity guy. But my favourite book of all time is The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists by a guy called Robert Tressell. This book will change your politics. It is a fantastic book, really and truly. Although it’s fiction, you won’t get truth like it. I have read numerous books and this one will never leave my mind.

How did you get involved in ‘Return to Learning’?I was lucky enough to go to school. I was educated, but some guys didn’t have that opportunity. It’s all luck at the end of the day. The course covers basics like writing, reading, arithmetic, spelling and computers. You can choose whatever you feel you are weak on.

The course can help people so much. Imagine learning how to read. It opens up so many doors that you’ve missed. It must be very embarrassing if you are out somewhere you can’t read what is on the wall. There’s a stigma attached to it. That’s why participation in these courses is confidential, and that’s so important. About three years ago the union got a letter from a member who had gone on the course. He thought it was brilliant and thanked IMPACT for prompting him into going.

What do you say to people considering the course?I ask them have they done any research into what it’s about. They needn’t tell me what subject they are going to pick. That’s up to themselves. But I will get them whatever forms are needed. I tell them how to fill in the form, or fill it in for them. Then I bring it to the person who needs to sign off on it and hand it to the people who run the course.

The tuition you get is absolutely fantastic and the tutors are very helpful. People who finish the courses want to go on and u

on. One of our lads finished last Thursday after 15 weeks, and he wants to go on to the next level. It opens doors for more things. I’d like to see an awful lot more people taking it up. It’s beginning to get noticed, but we could do a bit more to get it out there. All of the business we do, the council and the union, is all websites, but people

doesn’t appeal to me whatsoever. I try and jump in and sort it out if I can, but sometimes I can’t. I like a bit of spontaneity but, if you’re doing something, it has to be organised properly.

Tell me about your IMPACT involvement? I’m the rep for the housing attendants’ section in the Municipal

who are going to back to learning may not be able to get to websites.

Are people nervous about doing the courses?People are apprehensive at the beginning. It’s a mixture of being out of education so long, plus the stigma attached to it. They don’t know what to expect. I would imagine it’s like your first day at school. Where’s me mammy! But once it kicks off, you realise everyone in the classroom is the same as you. Everyone is on an equal playing field here.

Who inspires you?It might be a cheesy answer, but my father. He was a union man and very politically active. He is in his late-eighties. A fantastic guy, a decent type of man for helping people. He worked as a lorry driver, based in Finglas. I still remember when I was a kid they were on strike for a couple of weeks. He was on the strike committee. Domo is the guy I would look up to.

What can’t you leave home without?My watch. It’s part of me. If I went somewhere and had no watch, I would take my wife’s.

What’s it like working in Dublin City Council? It’s a good job. Lately morale is low with all the cutbacks. But overall it’s been good to me.

Who would you like to have a pint with?I’d like to meet Arthur Guinness and find out how he got a vast business empire from a drink that is horrible when you drink it for the first time. Absolutely vile. But after your second pint, you think it’s the best thing in the world.

What really annoys you?Bad organisation and bad management just

“I’d like to meet Arthur Guinness and find out how he got a vast business empire from a drink that is horrible when you

drink it for the first time. But after your second pint, you think it’s the best thing in the world.”

WORk & LIFE: THE MAGAzINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

Returning to learning The ‘return to learning’ project is a partnership initiative between the Local Authority National Partnership Advisory Group (LANPAG) and the Department of Education and Science (DES), supported by the National Adult Literacy Agency (NALA). The programme, which started in 2001, has been successfully run by many local councils throughout the country. It aims to give staff an opportunity to attend workplace basic skills courses in areas like reading, writing, arithmetic, spelling and computers. Participants benefit from improved skills, self-confidence and a reawakened interest in learning.

Find out more about the Dublin City Council programme from Mary MacSweeney on 01-222-5151 or mary.macsweeney@dublincity.ie. Or contact your local authority partnership facilitator for details of local courses.

Employees’ branch. I don’t know how many years I’m at this now, I’ve lost count. It must be ten years at least.

What helps you when the going gets tough?I’m lucky my wife is a very good listener. She’s very good at giving small bits of advice at the right time. I just find her so helpful. Sometimes I would be lost with something, talk it out with Maria, and we get

to the end of it there. Another cheesy answer, but it’s true.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?He who laughs and walks away lives to fight another day. In a nutshell, keep your powder dry. Listen to what’s going on around you. Never be too quick to make judgements.

What would you like to be remembered for?He was just a good guy. If people

say that about you, what more could ask for?

Interviewed by Martina O’Leary l.

Mick walking towards IMPACT’s Dublin office,

a path he has walked for many years as a union rep.

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Mick has a passion for reading.

Community & voluntary sector

In the boom years, the voluntary and community sector played a growing role in vital frontline service delivery in vulnerable communities throughout the country. Now that the tiger has fled, they are at the frontline of the first wave of spending cuts. NIALL SHANAHAN looks at how the sector is facing its biggest challenge yet.

OUT OF the ashes of the last recession in Ireland, voluntary agencies and community organisations emerged as one of the key service providers to vulnerable communities all over Ireland. They are Ireland’s hidden providers, delivering badly needed services in innovative and flexible ways wherever there is desperate need in our communities. From childcare to drug advice clinics, community education programmes and anti-bullying initiatives, the sector attracted talented and highly motivated workers keen to develop services in response to the needs of their own communities.

Now as the economic crisis deepens, the sector is enduring a silent catastrophe as spending is withdrawn and jobs are lost.

As the sector grew in the early 1990s, its importance was recognised by the state, and that led to the creation of the local area partnerships – state-funded, non-governmental agencies dedicated to the development of specific geographical areas. There are 38 local area partnerships across the country, hosting a wide variety of services such as childcare, jobs initiatives and services for older people and women at risk of domestic violence.

The arrival of initiatives like the FÁS-funded Community Employment (CE) programme helped to develop the level of service provided by the sector. By providing budgets for staff and training, voluntary sector workers were able to develop their skills, and projects could put volunteers on the payroll. With high unemployment in the early 1990s, the country had a wealth of very able people languishing on the dole. Many, including this writer, had their careers kick-started with a place on a CE scheme, with a community or voluntary programme, which opened the door to invaluable training and work experience. At the time, the only other available options for many people were emigration or stints of work in the ‘black economy’.

Organisations working in the sector have long been in a position to advise the Government on the needs of vulnerable people and communities. Professionalism and expertise has grown steadily and, working with the mainstream public service, organisations are well placed to advise the state on what

services are needed to respond to community needs in a very direct way. Funding can find its way to service delivery almost instantly because community and voluntary organisations already have the structures in place to respond.

There is, of course, an added – and far less welcome – incentive for the Government, which has been the subject of many an IMPACT campaign in recent years. Pay scales in the community and voluntary organisations are lower than in the private sector or mainstream public service, so the state has been able to fund a wide variety of social programmes at a much lower cost than if it tried to provide the same services directly.

So, on the one hand, we had a vibrant and committed sector that was growing, identifying needs, accessing the required funding and delivering the service, all the while growing in its professionalism, knowledge and skill. On the other hand, we had a Government that recognised the potential of a sector to deliver public services on the cheap. u

The seldom seen sector

But in the absence of long term commitments on funding, the sector has always been vulnerable to a change in the fortunes of the state. Also, those who work in the sector have little in the way of job security, pay that reflects their expertise, or pension entitlements. In 2007, IMPACT identified a trend of skilled and experienced workers leaving the sector in order to pursue better pay, conditions and job security in other sectors of the economy. While this may have slowed due to the economic downturn, it did highlight the long term vulnerability of the sector.

That vulnerability is now further exposed because many of the organisations rely on funding from multiple departments and state bodies. They are required to re-apply for funding annually from departments which, in turn, have had their budgets cut. For example, funding for the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, one of the primary sources of funding for many organisations in the sector, was reduced by 6% this year.

People and organisations in the sector are now asking themselves what the future holds as service demand rises and the pool of available resources continues to shrink in size.

The Wheel is a support and representative body connecting community and voluntary organisations and charities across Ireland. Established in 1999, it evolved to become a resource centre and forum for the community and voluntary sector, reflecting a wide network of organisations growing in their professional capacity. Writing in its own newsletter Le Chéile early last year, Chief Executive Officer Deirdre Garvey examined the myopic view of the sector taken by the State. “Community and voluntary organisations tend to be ghettoised by the misperception that they are somehow supplemental to the mainstream economy. Because they are not viewed as enterprises, they miss out on the host of supports our Government provides to Irish enterprise,” she wrote.

Now that we’re in recession, the failure to recognise the real economic value of the sector, along with plummeting exchequer revenues, has led to a ‘slash and burn’ approach which is pushing the sector closer to the frontline of spending cuts. But in the same article, Ms Garvey highlights the value of the sector in real terms: “According to the Centre for Nonprofit Management in the Business School in Trinity College, the over 24,000 ‘nonprofit’ organisations in Ireland employ over 63,000 full and part-time workers, and contribute more than €2.5 billion to our economy.”

In addition to this, The Wheel says that over two million people – two-thirds of Irish adults – engage annually in the social, cultural and humanitarian enterprises offered by the sector. The sector has been delivering services in parts of the u

76 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009 WORk & LIFE: ThE MAGAzINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

“Overall, Government has taken measures of such a kind that those who can afford to pay will pay and we will protect the most vulnerable people in society…Every effort will be made to ensure that the impact of the necessary reductions in funding next year will not hit services on the ground.”

Éamon Ó Cuív, Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs on Budget 2009.

Staff at the KWCDT Partnership office packing up on their last day as the partnership closes its doors following the withdrawal of funding by state agency Pobal. Left to right: Kevin Byrne, Alison Roberts, manager Paul Crinion, Avril Carruth and Trish McCann.

Two-year-old Emer Mulligan and her mother Yvonne (centre) with staff at the Childcare Information Bureau, one of the projects at KWCDT Partnership.

“Workers in the private sector, for example Waterford Crystal, received loads of coverage when their jobs were threatened. But nobody seems to care what happens to us.”

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Community & voluntary sector

country where the economic boom was never felt. Ironically, these are the communities who are witnessing the early signs of spending cuts.

The KWCDT (Kimmage, Walkinstown, Crumlin, Drimnagh, and Terenure) Partnership was established 1996 to manage social inclusion programmes for employment, community development, childcare, young people at risk, training and education. Over 84% of the 3,900 unemployed people who have availed of its local employment service since 2001 have progressed into training and employment. Over 300 people currently use the service.

In June the KWCDT partnership had its funding withdrawn by the state agency Pobal after months of uncertainty. Eleven jobs were lost between the local employment service and the partnership head office, while the remaining project staff face massive uncertainty about their futures. Fifty-six people employed under its jobs initiative were retained when the Irish Congress of Trade Unions took on the task of hosting the scheme. It was a small piece of good news after a difficult period for the partnership.

“We went through hell for four months. We were told we would only receive 40% of our redundancy payment, we would not receive our holiday pay, the offices would close and the services to the community lost,” explained IMPACT member Carol French, liaison officer with the local employment service at KWCDT.

Carol explains that the withdrawal of funding will have a devastating impact on the locality at a time when employment services are most needed. The decision was confirmed in May, and, although Pobal said funding for “viable” projects would remain in the area, it didn’t clarify what services would be funded and who would be responsible for managing them.

sector. Joining members of SIPTU and representatives from the Irish National Organisation for the Unemployed, the protest was addressed by Una O’Connor, chair of IMPACT’s Boards and Agencies’ branch. She said most community organisations were cutting pay and other expenditure in a desperate attempt to retain services and the jobs that are vital to service delivery.

“The Government sees valuable community projects as something that can be easily and quickly cut, regardless of the consequences for vulnerable people and communities. This is a silent catastrophe and every cut in community sector funding means dashed hopes for unemployed young people, less help for victims of rape, fewer refuges for victims of domestic violence, more dangerous nights on the street for our homeless, more disadvantaged women passing up rare job opportunities because they can’t get affordable childcare, and more young people condemned to a short lifetime of drug addiction. Many organisations are deeply concerned about surviving through the summer months, let alone the recession” she said.

Meanwhile, the so called ‘An Bord Snip’ is due to make its recommendations on public service expenditure shortly. It is likely to focus on state sector agencies and how they distribute funding and sub-contract work and services to other organisations, including those in the voluntary sector. IMPACT is concerned that the group will recommend cuts in funding and support to the voluntary and community sector because it will be seen as a soft target. Carol French at KWCDT feels that the wider public will not be too concerned. “Workers in the private sector, for example Waterford Crystal, received loads of coverage when their jobs were threatened. But nobody seems to care what happens to us” she says.

Meanwhile, the Government has made commitments on spending for 2009. Funding of over €50 million under the Community Services Programme, supporting an estimated 450 projects in 2009, providing approximately 2,100 whole-time equivalent posts, was promised in last October’s budget. Last year the programme funded 355 projects, and the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht affairs said the increase “will be based on careful management of the funding.”

The Department says those commitments are being delivered on this year. Yet the ‘careful management’ would appear to be entirely at odds with how those workers who lost their jobs at KWCDT were treated. A complete withdrawal of funding was deemed necessary and Pobal showed little interest in discussing how to resolve difficulties.

The experience has left its mark on the Dublin 12 community, but also on the wider community and voluntary sector. James Nolan, a Crumlin resident who registered with the local employment service in 2005, said: “This is a great service. I was looked after very well. I was out of work for eight years before attending the service. Now I am working in a full time job with Dublin City Council, and I am also attending part time classes to address my literacy issues. I would not be where I am now had it not been for the support of the local employment service, and all the staff. This service cannot be lost to this community.” James was one of the 300 service users who signed a petition to save the service.

Paul Crinion, acting manager of the partnership says there is 50 to 60 years of combined experience in the office, with local knowledge and an understanding of the community networks and the statutory networks that can support them. “When we are gone, there will be a huge services gap. Even though we are packing up to leave, the phone is hopping with enquiries about enterprise projects and millennium grants for students,” he said.

As the recession tightens its grip, the kinds of services provided by the community and voluntary sector will be needed more than ever. IMPACT represents thousands of workers in the sector, and has been fighting to retain jobs and protect services, particularly in organisations funded by the HSE. IMPACT official Chris Cully says these are the organisations who have felt the initial wave of spending cuts. “Community and voluntary organisations in the health and care services were the first to see cuts in jobs and services, and I have no doubt that we will see this trend continue. IMPACT has been fighting to save jobs and protect services. The relationship between the organisations in the sector and the funding bodies makes them vulnerable, which means there is an important role for the union to offer as much protection as possible. So that is what we are doing,” she says.

After the boom, there remains a sense that, but for the commitment, professionalism and skill of people working in this sector, our treatment of the most vulnerable in Irish society was found wanting. At last month’s protest, Linda Scully of KWCDT warned others: “If you let it happen to them, then it will happen to you.” l

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The cuts came as the ESRI predicted unemployment will rise to over 16% by the end of next year. “We have areas within the partnership where unemployment is already at 16%. These areas would always have had higher unemployment than the national average during the boom years.” Carol has a wealth of experience and local knowledge built up over eight years of working at the partnership. “At the moment, there are vague promises of starting up new projects in 2010, but everything that we have built up here over the last number of years will be lost. They will be starting from scratch and people who need the service more than ever before are the ones who are losing out,” she says.

Trish McCann, childcare coordinator for the partnership said: “Pobal are being tough on us in order to set a precedent when it comes to dealing with the other partnerships, many of which are now being audited. They probably face the same fate as us.”

IMPACT official Matt Staunton brought the case to the Labour Relations Commission (LRC) in order to facilitate talks about the transfer of staff and services to another partnership company. Matt says that IMPACT will pursue the case to the Labour Court in order to ensure that the appropriate sectoral redundancy entitlements, including withheld holiday payments, for the workers affected are paid. He said the LRC expressed surprise at the difference in approach of the two state agencies involved. “The board of management moved heaven and earth to work things out with FÁS, which has saved 56 workers on the jobs initiative scheme. By contrast, Pobal took a severe approach to the partnership, and were unwilling to engage with the board of management. They seem intent on shutting it down and dancing on its grave,” he says.

IMPACT members took part in a protest in June against the imposition of cuts in the wider community and voluntary u

98 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009 WorK & LIFe: The MagazIne For IMPaCT MeMBerS

Staff of the KWCDT local employment service packing up to go. Left to right: Catherine Behan, Thelma Mahon, Caroline Maguire, Liz Walsh, Marion Sweeney and Antoinette Curley.

Flowers and messages of support filled the KWCDT offices in its final week in June.

Many organisations are deeply concerned about surviving through the summer months, let alone the recession.

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11

Mapping the future

OUR ANCIENT ancestors navigated the earth by studying the position of thesun, the moon and the stars. The discovery of the magnetic north and southpoles made the tricky process of navigating the oceans a lot morestraightforward, and the development of navigation systems has played akey role in the evolution of the human race.

Fast forward to the present day and we’ve developed a sophisticationthat would have seemed the stuff of science fiction only 15 years ago.Satellite navigation, Google maps and mobile phones with built-inglobal positioning systems have brought us into an age where findingyour way is as simple as pushing a few buttons or clicking a mouse.

Ireland enjoys a unique position in the development of the technologywe take for granted today. Amanda O’Hara, a graduate trainee withOrdnance Survey Ireland (OSI), and an active member of IMPACT,explained Ireland’s extraordinary history in surveying and mappingwhen I recently visited the discreetly hidden and leafy campus ofOSI in Dublin’s Phoenix Park.

“Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Colby was the first to be giventhe task of surveying Ireland in 1820. The OrdnanceSurvey Office was then created in 1829 to do a

NIALL SHANAHAN is impressed at the skills andtechnology on display in Ordnance Survey Ireland. But can this level of quality survive the economic downturn?

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The lie of the land

Amanda O’Hara, graduatetrainee, Ordnance Survey

Ireland, pictured at OSI’s head office in the

Phoenix Park, Dublin.

WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

“In European terms we are fairly advanced. Ireland is up there with the most sophisticated technology for this type of work. We are constantlydeveloping our knowledge of the bestavailable technology and making it work for us.”

detailed survey of the entire island of Ireland, so asto update land valuations for taxation purposes. In1842, Ireland became the first country in the worldto be entirely mapped at such a detailed scale,”Amanda says. “Those first surveys are incrediblyaccurate, and the maps they produced are reg -arded by cartographers as amongst the finest everproduced.”

Amanda has been with OSI just over two years,joining as part of a group of 15 graduate traineesfor an intensive training programme. “I waspresident of the student’s union in NUI Maynoothand I was on the lookout for something interesting.I did geography as part of my degree and hadalways enjoyed it. When I saw that OSI wasrecruiting graduates with similar skills I sent offmy CV and not long after that I landed in thePhoenix Park!”

�

�

Mapping the future

12 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

Amanda makes it all sound verysimple, but OSI had a very specificidea about the kind of highly skilledgraduates they wanted to recruit.“They were recruiting for people with ageography background, and peoplewith specific technical skills. I hadspent some time studying one par -ticular specialised area known asremote sensing. It is the process oftaking and processing satellite images.I suppose it became my unique sellingpoint at the job interview,” she says.

All the graduates were put throughintense on-the-job training. Senior staffare assigned to each graduate, and thetraining programme places a greatemphasis on rotating graduates ar -ound the company so that they gain adeeper understanding of every aspectof the work. “It’s very much a men -toring process. We were encouraged toask lots of questions.”

After completing her training, Amandastarted work in the land boundariessection of OSI. “A lot of the work withboundaries involved dealing withenquiries from the public, and therewere quite a few enquiries from thelegal profession. There is a sustainedlevel of interest from the public which,despite the economic downturn, hasn’tslowed down at all.”

So what happens to all of the surveyinformation gathered by OSI? “Weproduce digital and paper maps forbusiness, leisure, adminis trative andeducational use. OSI also licenses theuse of its data in digital format for awide range of computer based applic -ations. Our main customers would becounty councils, for planning packsand mapping. We are also in theprocess of digitising the records of theLand Registry.”

OSI is also developing a learning toolfor secondary school students calledScoilnet. “It’s used to view maps in theclassroom and is user friendly for boththe student and teacher. We aremaking it available to schools throughour website,” Amanda says. OSI wontwo ‘Golden Spider’ awards last yearfor the website (www.osi.ie) collectinggongs for best education, research andtraining website and the best e-government website.

Ireland remains very much at theforefront of developments in surveytechnology. “In European terms we arefairly advanced. Ireland is up there withthe most sophisticated technology forthis type of work. We are constantlydeveloping our know ledge of the bestavailable technology and making itwork for us,” Amanda says.

Because of the publicservice recruitment

embargo there are no immediate plans for any more graduate

trainee programmes.

As well as the headquarters in Dublin,OSI has six regional offices spreadacross the country in Longford, Sligo,Tuam, Ennis, Kilkenny and Cork. Theregional offices opened in the early1990s, and the organisation employs320 people across the country.

Amanda and her fellow graduates havehad an enviable start to their careers,while OSI continues to push techno -logical boundaries in response to theneeds of the public and the comm -ercial world. However, as with everyother part of the public service, recentdevelopments bring their own chall -enges.

There are no immediate plans formore graduate trainee programmes atOSI, because of the public servicerecruitment embargo. OSI is also likelyto lose some of its most senior talentwhen the early retirement schemeopens up in the autumn.

The organisation has made a virtue ofrecruiting highly skilled graduates anddeveloping OSI’s capacity through awell organized mentoring programmeexploring the boundaries of a highlyskilled area of work. It is a process thathas worked incredibly well for OSI, andis a great example of managing talentfor the high skills economy Irelandhopes to stake its future on.

Let’s hope it finds a way to continue todo that �

Each of them has a specific role, withinformation constantly being gathered,processed, and put into a central data-base, which is the nerve centre of theentire operation. “For example, aircraftthat take the images are based inEnnis, feeding information to the re-mote sensing unit in Dublin, while inLongford, all the information taken inthe field is quality checked. Each officehas its own specialised area, but thework is fully inte-grated, constantlyup dating the centraldatabase.”

Amanda has rec -ently relocated toLongford, where shespecialises in dataenhance ment. Thedec ision to movewas a fairly simpleone. “I am a Long -ford native, so it isgreat to be back onhome ground. I con -sider myself verylucky.”

I innocently en quireif she supp ortsLongford Slash ersGAA club (the onlyclub I know of inthat part of thecountry). “Oh no,they’re our swornenemies! I’m fromDrumlish in NorthLongford.” Per hapsDrumlish have atactical advantagenow by having supp -ort from someonewith such a detailedknowledge of the lieof the land. Slash -ers take note.

Gxxxxx

Five year sentence begins

“There are 5,000 public servants in the area, but it was a huge factor for others too. Parents whose daughters or sons were starting out with mortgages and young kids in crèches understood how the levy is making it so difficult for many to make ends meet. There’s huge anger that workers are being blamed for the financial mess,” says Mick.

His point is supported by the RTÉ exit poll, which found that 53% of voters – far more than work in the public service – said the levy influenced their voting preferences.

The levy was a huge issue for Caitríona Jones in Lucan too. “I met young women working in the public service whose partners had lost jobs in u

THREE-MONTH old Mia had no idea what kind of outfit she was joining when she became part of the Jones family three months ago. That was about the time that her mum, Cathríona, was agreeing to join the Labour ticket in the Lucan ward for the South Dublin county council elections.

Cathríona, a member of IMPACT’s Cabin Crew branch committee, had stood down after five years as a councillor when boundary changes left three Labour councillors chasing two seats in her old ward of Tallaght South. But she was persuaded to run again, despite having just had her first child.

“I really enjoyed being a councillor for the last five years and got a lot of satisfaction from dealing successfully with even the slightest problem from a constituent. And the big decisions, like planning and rezoning, meant you could change the county in a significant way.” So she agreed to run again and took the fifth seat on the 11th count.

“I’m absolutely relieved. By polling day I’d hit a brick wall and felt I couldn’t do any more. But this is a fresh start in a new ward, even though it will be a difficult few years with finances the way they are,” she says.

Mick Quinn, vice chair of IMPACT’s Donegal branch health section, won a county council seat for Sinn Fein on the same day. I spoke to him from his well-earned holiday in Gweedore. He was “relieved, delighted and exhausted” at the end of a campaign that began last November. Mick took a month’s leave of absence and, before that, worked a geographically huge ward every evening and weekend for six months.

“You wouldn’t do it unless you really believed in what you’re doing,” he says. “I’ve been a trade union activist almost all my working life. I’m also a socialist and a republican. James Connolly said that the cause of labour is the cause of Ireland, and the cause of Ireland is the cause of labour. You can’t be one without the other,” he says.

In a county where unemployment has doubled in the last year, it’s no surprise that jobs topped the list of concerns on Donegal doorsteps. But the public service levy was a huge issue too.

Elections 2009

13

Being a union representative can be a great apprenticeship for wannabe local councillors. BERNARD HARBOR spoke to some impressive IMPACT activists who just got themselves elected.

Pho

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Caithríona Jones and daughter Mia after the election.

WORk & LIFE: THE MAGAzINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

14

Elections 2009

construction. Their family income was halved and then hit with all the levies introduced in the April budget, plus a huge pension levy. I don’t even like calling it that,” she says.

Caitríona, who works in the private sector, said her role in IMPACT helped her to understand and sympathise with the reality of the levy when it came up on the doorstep. “My ability to sympathise with public servants was a huge part of the campaign,” she says.

She reckons the role of trade union representative stands you in good stead for public office.“Any one of our committee members would make a good councillor. Dealing with negotiations and members’ problems is the same kind of work that a councillor does in many ways.”

Mick agrees. “As a union activist you learn what’s important to people. It’s a fabulous training ground where you learn how to deal with difficult issues. And it builds up your confidence. You’re not afraid to deal with officialdom,” he says.

Former IMPACT president Finbarr O’Driscoll, who has just been elected to Cobh town council, says there’s also a link with public service experience. “From public servant to public representative is a very small and natural shift. As a housing officer, I was dealing with people’s needs and problems up close and personal. I’m retired now but I’m still a people person,” he says. It’s no surprise that Finbarr puts housing at the top of his list of objectives as a councillor.

He also has strong views about the restrictions on local authority staff, which meant he could not run for office until he’d retired. “I know a clerical officer, who was also a member of Skibbereen town council and a great union man. But he had to give up his seat when he was promoted to grade IV,” he said. u

SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009 15WORk & LIFE: THE MAgAzINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

You don’t have to tell that to gerry Sheridan, who was busy taking down election posters when I caught up with him. He’s opting for early retirement in order to take up his hard-won seat as a Mullingar town councillor. IMPACT had previously taken legal advice on his behalf when he wanted to run for the county council, but the view was that the rule barring most council staff from running for local office was constitutional.

gerry, who served 18 years as a local IMPACT activist up to 2002, agrees that his experience in the union and in local

when he was returned as an independent Meath county councillor. He was motivated to run for office when, after 20 years as a community activist, he felt his home town of Ashbourne was being developed very quickly and without adequate facilities for families in the community.

Joe’s union experience helped him to negotiate a deal as a councillor, which saw over €1 million invested in community facilities. He sees communications as crucial. “I have 22 years experience in the union, which stood to me when negotiating in the council chamber and with the county manager. That training also helps when it comes to informing people about what’s happening. It’s not always easy to stand up and face people, but it benefits the council too,” he said.

The desire to do something for his home town also motivated first time Fianna Fáil councillor Michael Smith, who is on the executive of IMPACT’s School Completion branch, to stand for Ballybay town council in Monaghan. “You are limited in what you can achieve, but being an elected councillor does give you moral authority to speak out on issues,” he says.

Meanwhile back in Cobh, Finbarr is looking forward to serving the public in a different role. But, after a long, tough campaign, he’s got other tasks on his mind too. “You’ve heard of forced labour. Well now I’m being forced to catch up on all the jobs at home,” he says! l

SIX OF Ireland’s elected MEPs have signed a trade union pledge, promising to vote in favour of measures to protect and enhance public services over the next five years. The pledge was organised by the European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU).

The campaign has only just started according to EPSU’s Bryan Synnott, who plans to organise a meeting of up to 100 signatories in an attempt to create a cross-party caucus for public services. And he wants to assign an ‘EPSU shadow,’ from each MEP’s constituency or region.

On the face of it, the European election results will make it harder for unions working to protect employment rights and public services. The centre-right ‘European People’s Party’ group, made up of parties that usually support reduced regulation and free-market policies, increased its influence. This was at the expense of the Party of European Socialists, which usually shares trade union concerns about public services and workers’ rights.

But it’s not quite that straightforward according to Dublin MEP Proinsias de Rossa, who has worked with IMPACT on a range of issues including the services directive, agency workers’ rights, and European rules on working time.

“State-by-state, it’s clear that the centre-left were most successful where we promoted a progressive pro-European agenda. The centre-right was successful where they presented a similar agenda with a ‘social market economy’ approach. This will give us some political leverage in the Parliament,” he says.

De Rossa makes the point that the overall number of MEPs in the various political groups doesn’t necessarily reflect how votes will be cast on specific issues. “That’s not to underplay the difficulties, particularly if we get a strongly centre-right commission and president,” he adds.

Portugese conservative José Manuel Barosso has since been reappointed as Commission President. Like the other member states, the Irish government must appoint its new commissioner later this year. De Rossa argues that this should involve Dáil hearings and nominations l

BERNARD HARBOR outlines what’s next for the European Parliament and public services.

Euro services campaign continues

government will stand him in good stead as a councillor. “I would be a very hands-on, accessible person and that’s what being a local councillor is all about. It’s not for everyone. It’s hard work and you have to be committed. The public is very demanding,” he says.

Joe Bonner, who’s secretary of IMPACT’s Communications branch, topped the poll and increased his vote by over 70%

Mick Quinn: “There’s huge anger.”

Finbarr O’Driscoll.

Joe Bonner: Community motive.

AS PART of the Government’s efforts to reduce the publicservice pay bill, the Department of Finance has announced anew incentivised career break scheme. The scheme is opento civil servants, and the Department of the Environment hasgiven individual local authorities the option of offering thescheme to their staff.

The HSE recently announced that it was withdrawing thescheme, although this was widely interpreted as a ham-fistedattempt to bully staff in to accepting changes to their workingconditions. IMPACT has insisted that the scheme should beavailable to all and negotiations on this are continuing.

Although taking up the scheme would mean a hefty reductionin income for most, there may well be attractions for manyIMPACT members. You should also note that, if there is novacancy available when you want to go back to work, you couldend up waiting up to a year without pay before you can return.

Page title

16 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

Your rights at work

WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

However, in the initial HSE special incentive career breakscheme, grades that are exempt from the recent recruitmentembargo are not eligible to apply for this scheme. Theseinclude workers such as occupational therapists, socialworkers, and speech and language therapy grades.

Already taken a career break?If you have already taken a career break, you may still beeligible to apply under this scheme. In the civil service, youare eligible if you have not taken three career breaks andexceeded ten years on career breaks. In the initial healthservice scheme, you were eligible if you have not taken threecareer breaks and exceeded the limit of five years on careerbreaks.

Other forms of special leave without pay will generally betaken to account when calculating these overall limits, whichinclude time taken off under this special incentive careerbreak scheme.

There are limits to the purposes for which career breaks willbe sanctioned. In general, a career break can be allowed for

family reasons or other domestic purposes, travel abroad,self-employment, and educational purposes. They are not

available for taking up paid employment in the State orfor certain educational purposes.

There can be no potential conflict of interest betweenyour public service job and the activity you intend tocarry out whilst on career break. If you plan tobecome self-employed during the career break youmust give your employer full details of the self-employment including, where appropriate, an outlineof your proposed business contacts and client base.

Your employer can take it up with you if they discoveryou have taken up employment, or are otherwise engaged

in activity, that causes a conflict of interest. If the potentialconflict of interest is not resolved, you could lose your

position within the public service.

The bad news for your colleagues who are left behind is thatthe recent recruitment and promotions embargo means thatstaff on career breaks won’t be replaced.

Get more information from your personnel section or fromwww.finance.gov.ie or www.hse.ie/eng/publications �

17

This article is for information only. It is not a definitive interpretation of the law or the career break scheme. Find out more at www.impact.ie

MARTINA O’LEARYsays you should readthe small print beforeopting for the publicservice career breakscheme.

If you choose to take a career break, make sure you don’tfall foul of the rules.

� You must give two months’ notice of your intention toreturn to work. If you fail to do this it will be takenthat you have resignedfrom the service.

� It may take up to 12months after the expiryof the three-year careerbreak for your depart -ment to find you anappropriate vacancy. Anytime spent waiting for re-employment, once youhave indicated your in -tention to return to work,will reckon as part of thecareer break periodother than for the pur -poses of the overalllimits relating to durat -ion of career breaks.

� There is no paymentafter the three yearcareer break and returnto duty.

� You can only apply to resume work early underexceptional reasons related to family hardship. Inthese situations, your employer may allow you toresume duty before the end of the career break ifthere is a vacancy available.

� While on the incentive career break, you are notentitled to take part in promotion competitions.

The main points of the civil service scheme include:

� The career break must be taken for three years.

� Successful full-time applicants will get an incentivepayment of a third of gross basic pay, up to a maximumof €12,500 a year. This is payable quarterly in arrears.

� These amounts will be reduced pro-rata for anyoneworking reduced hours.

� The payments are taxable.

� The leave will not count as service and will not reckon forincrements or towards qualifying service for annual leaveor promotion.

� Staff can still apply for the normal career break scheme,which is different from this one.

� Staff who are al ready on a career break, or have signed acareer break under taking under the normal scheme,cannot opt for the new scheme.

� Applications must be made by 1st July and career breaksmust start no later than 1st September 2009, althoughthere are three specific exemptions relating to maternityleave, deferral of career break due to work pressure, anddisciplinary action.

� Your employer can refuse a career break for stated‘business reasons,’ which relate to the operatingrequirements of your organisation.

You have to have satisfactorily completed two years’continuous service on the date of commencement of thecareer break to be eligible to apply for the scheme. Butperiods of special leave without pay in accordance withmaternity protection legislation, adoptive leave, carer’s leaveand parental leave are not considered as breaking yourcontinuity of service.

Don’t make a career break mistake

Watch out!P

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Giving good interview is even more important whenjobs and promotions are thin on the ground, says BERNARD HARBOR.

DESPITE THE recession, only 16% of emp loyers think candidates are preparing better for jobinterviews, even though 58% of jobseekers saythey are putting in more prep work. That’saccording to a recent survey of over 1,500 job -seekers and 623 employers.

The research, by recruitment comp any HaysIreland, revealed that employers expectcandidates to have put in between two andfive hours prep aration, although mostjobseekers consider two hours to be topwhack.

Amazingly, the survey found that lessthan 40% of can didates tailor their CVto each job, while almost a quarter saidthey never do. And more than aquarter of jobseekers see no prob -lem with going out social ising thenight before an interview, eventhough most said they wouldn’tstay out late.

“It is clear from the survey thatcandidates are still failing tomeet employer expectationswhen it comes to preparationand performance at interview,”according to Hays manag ingdirector Richard Eardley.

Indeed, 3% of applicants saidthey were actually putting in lesseffort because they felt less likelyto get a job in the current clim -ate. Wrong call.

Your career

Talkingyour way into a new job

WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS 19

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“Tell me about yourself” is your

cue to enthusiastically give an outline of the

skills, experience and qualities you’ll bring to

the job and organisation, giving examples of relevant

achievements that will impress.gis_motor@jlt.ie

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anything you want to ask us?’ Makesure you’ve prepared a few questionsfor this inevitable part of the process.It’s a chance to dem onstrate yourknowledge of, and inter est in, theorganisation. But don’t ask about stufflike holidays or time off. You can estab -lish the precise terms and con ditionsonce the job is yours.

Make sure you get a good rest the daybefore the big gig. And err on theconservative when it comes to app -earance. A solid conservative suit orsmart dress, neat hair and steady onthe jewellery, perfume, aftershave andmake-up. Over-dressed is better than

under-dressed and docheck your outfit beforeinterview day.

Finally, be enthusiasticand don’t fret. You’veput in the prep. Youknow what they’relook ing for, you lookgood, and you’ve an -ticipated the ques -tions and practicedhow you’re going toanswer. Now just

stay calm and foc -ussed on getting

your messageac ross �

You can be 99% sure thatthe first question will bepretty general. Someversion of ‘tell me aboutyourself’ is your cue toenthusiastically give anoutline of the skills,experience and qualitiesyou will bring to the joband organisation, givingexamples of rele vantachievements that willimpress. Use the samestructure as your CV, butdon’t go into too muchdetail or take up morethan five minutes. Theywill ask you to expandon things.

You’re also likely to beasked about yourstrengths and weak -nesses. Dec ide on thethree strengths youthink most likely to getyou the job and giveexamples of how youhave used them in awork situation.

You’ll probably beasked about yourweaknesses. Don’t tellthem you have noneor fob them off with ‘Itend to work too hard.’ Instead, turnthe question to your advantage.Identify something that’s not terminalto your chances, and try to demon -strate actions you’ve taken to correctit. (Eg, I’d like to be more confidentwith figures, so I’ve taken a number ofcourses in my own time). It demon -strates that you’re human and that youhave the gumption to work on yourweaknesses.

You’re almostout of thewoodswhen youhear: ‘Isthere

WorkplaceviolenceWe live in a societywhere violence and

the threat of violenceis a constant. In my

own workplace in the VEC,I have seen a growing tendency towardaggressive and intimidating behaviourby members of the public towardsworkers.

Violence takes many forms, fromaggressive verbal abuse to physicalassault as well as other forms ofintimidation. I fear that, in the currentclimate of cutbacks, this will becomefar more common given people’sfrustration at cuts to services.

We must act to minimize the risk anddevelop a cohesive policy to respond tothe risks and the effects of workplaceviolence. Most workplaces have nopolicy to address violence and thereare no supports for staff who havebeen assaulted or threatened.

The effects of violence are far-reaching.The government, employers and tradeunions need to develop a commonpolicy on this issue. The right policysends a clear message that workplaceviolence cannot and will not be toler -ated.

Cait Shirran VEC Branch

Calling young workersThe ICTU youth committee is holdingits annual summer school on Saturday18th July.

The youth committee is an advisoryforum, set up under the ICTU constit -ution, and has delegates from a num -ber of the affiliated unions. Our job isto represent young workers, contributeto ICTU policy, and action mattersrelating to their interests.

The issues affecting young workers areoften sidelined when things get toughin the workplace, so it’s important thatwe have a strong voice and are able tocontribute to the bigger discussions ina concerted way.

Work & LifeWork & Life is the magazine for members of IMPACT trade union. IMPACT mem bers can have it mailed to them by con tacting Work & Lifeat IMPACT, Nerney’s Court, Dublin 1 or by emailing rnolan@impact.ie. Or call Roisin Nolan on 01-817-1544.

IMPACT also produces a monthly e-bulletin with more detailed in for mation about the union’s activities and cam paigns, and developmentsin your work place. Sign up via the website on www.impact.ie.

IMPACT is Ireland’s largest public sector union with members in health, local government, the civil service, education, the communitysector, semi-state org anisations, aviation and tele communications.

WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS 21

As opportunities thin to a trickle, it’smore important than ever to put on agood show at your interview.

All it takes is a bit of preparation. Firstthe basics. Spend a bit of timeresearching the organisation so thatyou are able to relate your skills andexperience to their goals and values. Itwill also enable you to talk knowledge -ably about the organisation, particu -larly if the common ‘why do you wantto work here?’ question comes up.

Talk to people who have some know -ledge of the organisation you’re apply -ing to, or the work area involved. Gettheir insight and advice on what toprepare and how to sell yourself on theCV and at interview.

Then read the advert and job des -cription carefully, along with any othermaterial you’ve dug up. This will helpyou to prepare a CV that tailors yourskills and experience to the specificrequirements of the job. Check outissue one of Work & Life for more oncompiling your CV.

Anticipate the kind of questions thatwill come up and think about howyou’ll answer them with specific andpositive examples that draw on yourexperience, skills and training. Thatmeans you have to be crystal clearabout the job requirements. Be readywith good examples of where you havesuccessfully used your skills, andpractice how you’ll answer questions inways that demonstrate your suitability.

Identify your strengths and weak -nesses as they relate to the job req -uirements, and anticipate how you willanswer questions about your weakerareas too. Practice is good, particularlyif you dread interviews. Get a closefriend or family mem ber to put you

through your paces.

Don’t be af raid toask for clarific -at ion if you’renot sure whatthey are ask -ing you. Andit’s ok ay tothink for afew sec on -ds beforediv ing inwith yourans wer.

Our summer school takes place in theoffices of the Irish Nurses Organisationin Dublin. The one-day event will feat -ure workshops, a range of guestspeakers and an opportunity to net -work with other young workers fromunions and employments all across theCongress family. More details will beavailable soon but it already promisesto be an interesting day! Anyonewishing to attend can contact me forfurther information.

Work is also ongoing in the develop -ment of a youth committee withinIMPACT itself. To make this work wereally need representation from all thedivisions so if anyone is interested theycan contact me.

Brian FureyIMPACT representative, ICTU YouthCommitteebfureyie@gmail.com

Home helpstandardsThe home helpservice enablesclients to live athome by assis -ting them withperson al anddom estic care.This ser vice ismon itored andvett ed, though it’sbe coming inc reas -ingly difficult tomonitor as the rec -ommend ations ofthe high level reporton home help serv -ices around staffinglevels have still to behon oured.

Unfortunately manyclients can’t accesshome help due to diff -er ent criteria existing indifferent parts of thecountry.

Home help coordinatorshave to sanc tion the ser -vice without standard ised

criteria. This decision can be over -turned by management, often inresponse to pressure from outsideinfluences.

Is it not time that the HSE introducednational criteria for access to homehelp services? Perhaps a financialassessment should also be introducedand levies charged as appropriate. Thiswould ensure all clients could accessthis vital service and would also ensureequity and transparency.

Brona de Paor Chairperson, Home HelpCoordinators’ Vocational Group

Your career

Star

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each issue and €30 for the rest. Let us know what

you think about the magazine or the

issues we’ve covered. Come to think of it,

let us know your views on anything

at all! Get out your pen and paper today.

And don’t forget to keep it nice and short.

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IMPACT Nerney’s Court, Dublin 1.

Or email rnolan@impact.ie.

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SUMMER/AUTUMN 200920

INTERVIEW CHECKLIST

Research the organisation

Use a well-prepared CV, tailored to the specificjob description, as your guide to the interview

Anticipate likely questions based on the jobdescription

Your answers should be specific and positive

Use concrete examples from your work history

Be ready for a question on your weaknesses

Dress smartly, erring on the conservative

Practice with a friend

Have questions ready for them

Be enthusiastic and calm

Pho

to:

Dre

amst

ime

Another up and coming graduate designer involved in the Atticproject is Yvonne Fleming, also from the Grafton Academy.

She specialises in women’s wear, separates and bridal, andshe’s done a menswear collection too. If you want to see hercollections contact her at yvonne.fleming@gmail.com. Eachof the designers who are showcasing in A Wear has their ownfacebook with images so you can see their collections theretoo.

NicheOther smart retailers are also trying to fill the niche for peoplelooking for something a little different and are stocking avariety of pieces from young designers. Top Shop’s Stephen’sGreen store has a concession area where you will find up andcoming Irish designers like Chupi and Tokki at very affordableprices.

If you’re looking for something ‘cheap and cheerful’ Se SiProgressive in Temple Bar stocks pieces from young aspiringdesigners. The Loft, Powerscourt Townhouse Centre, Dublin isalso worth investigating and carries a fairly extensive stock.

Keep an interested eye out for Howth’s Rebecca Flanagan, afinal year student at NCAD; Barbara Heuston, from Tramore,graduating from Limerick School of Art and Design; and MiaO’Connell, from Blackrock, Dublin, also graduating fromLimerick School of Art and Design. They were all finalists inthe Persil Irish Fashion Awards.

By the way, Mia O’Connell already has her own vintageclothing company, sourcing pieces in Paris, bringing themback home and customising them for those of us fortunateenough to know about her.

Wherever you live, there’s a talented young designer near you,just waiting to be discovered. And,though it’s not easy being a youngfashion des igner, comm ercialbreaks like this make thefuture look brighter forthe Irish industry �

Their collections are everything that the high street isn’t.Prices are more competitive than big name designers. For awhile anyway, commercialism hasn’t started to influence theirdesigns yet.

Writing in the Irish Independent recently, Andrea Byrne said:“A problem facing many students is striking the balancebetween the creativity that feeds fashion and the commer -cialism that sells it.” This year’s crop seems to have struckthat balance.

Emerging designers have to contend with celebrities likeVictoria Beckham and Kate Moss turning into designers. Suchfierce competition, coupled with the economic downturn,means making a mark in the fashion world is a very dauntingtask.

So where do we find them? Joanne says customers can bidfor outfits that are part of their degree collection, and buy atthe end of the college year. NCAD holds a degree exhibition inJune. It’s open to the public and showcases their entirecollection, consisting of six outfits. There are also exhibitionsin July and August where two outfits per graduate will be onshow.

On the high streetGreat praise must go to A Wear, who recently launched aninitiative which is a great opportunity for graduate designers.Based in their flagship store on Henry Street, Dublin, theyhave collaborated with graduates to display and sell theircollections each Saturday in The Attic.

Sarah Swan from Portmarnock studies at the GraftonAcademy. She tells me they very kindly offered the space ona not-for-profit basis. They decorated it in a funky bedroomstyle, like Urban Outfitters, and so far it’s been very successfulfor the young designers, of which there are eight with twoshowcasing each Saturday.

Sarah’s main design focus is on tailoring and her inspirationcomes from French designers like Balenciaga and RolandMouret. She’s hoping to move to New York to work with DianeVon Furstenburg for a spell. You can contact her atsarahkateswan@hotmail.com before that happens.

Second hand encoreON FOOT of my piece on second hand boutiques in the lastissue, I was contacted by IMPACT member Sinead Wynne.She’s located a lovely vintage clothes shop called Olive, whichhas just opened in Ennis. A new designer swap shop calledEncore has also opened in the town, at 20 O’ Connell Street.Its motto is "Good threads deserve a second chance." And sosay all of us!

Trish O’Mahony.

2322 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009 WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

All our bigname designersstarted out asgraduates. TRISHO’MAHONY saysyou can give thema leg-up the fashionladder, whilehelping yourselfto some uniquedesigns atcompetitiveprices.

Looking good

KEEPING UP to date with Ireland’s talented young designers is never easy. There’s such anarray of them. But it’s exciting. And it’s worth it.

If you’ve ever been to a student fashion show, you’ll know what I mean. The excitementis palpable. The optimism and spirit unstoppable. You’ll be inspired by the talent,

not to mention the tailoring, which can turn an ordinary design into a creation.

As a mere part of the drooling audience, you’d be forgiven any pangs ofjealousy for not being as creative - or as ambitious - as these graduates.

Joanne Power, from Glanmire in Cork, scooped the top award of €10,000in the Persil Fashion Award in April. It came with a two-week placementwith Marks and Spencer’s design studio in London.

Eight of Ireland’s top young designers battled it out, but Joanneemerged the clear winner. Her outfit was very pretty and,

genuinely, very wearable. Joanne’s father John was very active inIMPACT for many years, as chairman of the Cork branch, seniorvice president of the union between 1990 and 1991, and vice

president in 1991-1992. So it’s hard to resist claiming her asone of our own!

Joanne is a final year student in NCAD and intends goingto the renowned Central Saint Martin’s in London to doher MA. After that she may well follow in the footsteps ofJo Anne Hynes, who studied in Limerick School of Artand Design, then Central Saint Martin’s, before becoming

one of Ireland’s best known designers.

Potential“Power has great taste, great potential and should have a great

future,” according to Peter O’Brien, one of the judges in thisprestigious award. If you are interested in viewing her collections

you can contact her on joannedepaor@gmail.com.

The advantages of ‘discovering’ a graduatedesigner are many. They are full of originalityand fresh ideas. Their attention to detail isflawless. They have been trained to focus on a

high quality finish. They source unusual andtop quality fabrics with great care. And theyare making an effort to make a name forthemselves.

School’s out for

Ireland’s future fashionistas

Designer Gerard Hancox, from Ballyfermot, studied

at Ballyfermot College,then NCAD. His

e-mail address ishancox.g@hotmail.com

Jacket Individually stitchedand embossed jersey onto

rubber foam €400. Pale Blue latex shirt €100.

Grey and white stripedjersey t–shirt with

tucking detail €70.Dropped crotch, straight

leg denims €150.

Designed by top fashion student Joanne Power.Jacket €175. Top and vest €105. Shorts €45.Belt - model’s own. Contact Joanne atjoannedepaor@gmail.com. �

Ivyleigh Houseis not alone inproviding a topquality B&Bexperience.There are nowmany B&B’s,farmhousesand town and

country homes that give an alternativechoice to the many hotels around thecountry. In these recession ary times theymake a family holiday in Ireland, or aquick weekend break, a really temptingprospect.

ModernSo what is the Irish B&B experience allabout these days? According to the Townand Country House Association, it isabout exper iencing the warm, personaland friendly welcome of the Irish people,and drawing on their local knowledgewhile getting real value for money.

There has been a drive to modernise andbring Irish bed and breakfasts andfarmhouses into the 21st century, andmany have succeeded in this. EileenMcDonagh, chief executive of the IrishFarmhouse Holidays Association toldWork & Life that all its homes are of avery high standard. “The quality ofaccommodation in Ireland is very highand farmhouses must also meet thisstandard. The Farmhouse Associationhas been seeking mandatory licensingand classification of farmhouse andB&B accommodation for some timenow,” she says.

There is so much to do in Ireland, fromfishing, walking trails, equestrian sportsor just enjoying the countryside and thecraic. And its farmhouses can also bejust right for the kids. “Farmhouses arevery conducive for children, who can seethe animals and breathe in the clean air.They are out in the country getting thefeeling of what rural Ireland is all about,”says Eileen.

Cast your eye over the Bridgestone guideto the 100 Best Places to Stay in Irelandand you’ll see a range of top notch

accommodation from B&Bs,farm houses, town and countryhomes.

Ivyleigh House gets a mention,as does Kilgraney county housein Bagenalstown, County Carlow.I haven’t had the pleasure ofstaying here, but one of mydifficult-to-impress colleaguesraves about this great house,especially the food prepared byBryan Leech. The fact that mycolleague is a bit of a foodie,and

describes Kilgraney Country House as atreasure trove, is a very good rec -ommendation. They also have aroma -therapy packages available if you wantto pamper yourself. The Nore Valley areaof the country is quite breathtaking.

Down south, Heaton’s guest house inDingle, County Kerry, perched on theedge of the water with a fantastic viewof Dingle bay and harbour soundsappealing. The long string of mentionsit gets in the many guidebooks on goodaccommodation in Ireland should be ahint. This is a little gem.

Food for thought

Up in the north east, Ghan House inCarlingford again comes highly recomm -ended. You’re guaranteed a warmwelcome and great food – particularlyfish, straight from Carlingford Lough – aswell as a wide range of other foods.Ramblers take note: Ghan House is inBridgestone’s top ten places for walkinglist.

Finally out west way, Delphi Lodge, adelightful 1830s country house, is at thehigher end of the market – but for a goodreason. It offers top-quality accommo -dation, a spectacular setting and it’s alsorenowned for its food, especially thecommunal table where you get to meetan interesting range of people.

There’s lots of good value to be had atthe moment, so shop around and doyour research. Or get your friends andcolleagues to recommend somewhere.Try a part of Ireland you haven’t visitedbefore, but whatever your needs andpreferences, there’s definitely somethingfor everyone out there.

Be it a farmhouse summer holiday forthe family, a walking, golfing, surfingweekend away, a bit of romance, or justa quick night away from it all with a bitof luxury and pampering thrown in, it’sall to be found in Ireland’s B&Bs. Theypride themselves in top quality food andaccommodation, sound local knowledgeand extending the Céad Mile Fáilte �

Travel and trips

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That is the question we asked MARTINAO’LEARY to check out. She discovered thatthe Irish B&B experience has transcended thestereotypes and can now offer high-qualitybreaks at affordable prices.

I WOULD have dismissed thesugges tion out of hand if anyonehad sugg es ted I stay in an Irish bedand break fast a couple of yearsago.

The shivers rush up my spine aschildhood memories of flowerycrim p lene eiderdowns, shared bath -

rooms, off-white sheets, old towelsand greasy breakfasts come tomind. Yet many, many, years laterthings have changed very much forthe better.

I got my first inkling of this when Ihad the pleasure of staying in theIvyleigh House in Portlaoise a while

back. This establishment is a lovelyold town house, restored and furn -ished to a very high standard. Itsfour bedrooms, all en-suite andeach individually decorated, arebeautiful. As for the breakfast, wow!From the beautiful breads to thesausages, it was a feast in itself.

The Cliffs of Moher

Ivyleigh House

Find out moreYou can get more information fromwww.discoverireland.ie, www.townandcountryhomes.ie and www.irishfarmholidays.com, as well as the many guide books available in good book stores.

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“There’s beena drive tomodernise andbring Irish bedand breakfastsand farmhousesinto the 21stcentury. There’slots of goodvalue to be hadat the moment,so shop around.”

24 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009 25WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

GxxxxxBe good to yourself

Karen Ward, energy therapist on BBC’s ‘The Last Resort’ and holistic therapist presenter of RTE’S ‘Health Squad’, is also the co-author of ‘The Health Squad Guide to Health and Fitness’. Her new book ‘Change a Little to Change a Lot’ is in shops now. www.karenwardholistictherapsit.com

27WoRK & LiFE: THE MaGazinE FoR iMPaCT MEMBERS26 SUMMER/aUTUMn 2009

YoU SPEnD months looking forward to your summer holidays and then they seem to come and go in the blink of an eye. Within days you’re back to where you started and feeling stressed. Wouldn’t it be fantastic to be able to keep that blissful holiday feeling all year long? it might not be as difficult as you think.

1. Plan your next holiday immediately This may sound a bit drastic but it really works. on the way home, still in that relaxed state, dream and scheme with your family or friends about where you would like to visit next.

Financially, it may have to be a plan rather than a solid booking. But it will give you something to look forward to straight away. This is a terrific way to combat the post-holiday blues. Buy guidebooks and leaf through brochures.

2. Buy the musicThis is a little nugget. There is usually always a ‘holiday song’, either a top hit played in the nightclubs or perhaps the local ethnic music that we take a fancy to when we are away. if you go out and buy the CD, then play it on a cold, rainy autumn day, you’ll be surprised at how those holiday smiles come flooding back.

3. Cook the food Try to make that souvlaka or paella you adored on holiday. The smells and tastes of the place you visited will create

delicious aromas in your home. Smell is an amazing sense, which we tend to under-use. and it is linked irrevocably with our memories. if you are not into creative cooking find out if there’s a restaurant you can visit that serves the same type of food.

4. Keep up the holiday habits if you love reading or mooching around markets when you are away, then do more of it when you come home. Look forward to losing yourself in a good book. There are lots of fantastic new farmers’ markets in most big towns so this could be wonderful way to evoke that holiday feeling every week. if you tried jet skiing or wind surfing for the first time away, why not consider taking up the sport at home?

5. Use your holiday images as a way to relaxif you have never tried meditation as a way to bring your mind from a stressed to a relaxed state, here is a simple version to experiment with. Find 3-5 minutes to yourself each day. Close your eyes and, in your mind’s eye, bring up a really nice scene from your holidays. imagine what you were wearing and what the weather was like. in fact, go through your five senses to really feel you are there.

Your body will remember that holiday feeling and you’ll find yourself relaxing and even smiling. another way to do this is to keep your holiday snaps handy and enjoy flicking through them. Try whichever of the above tips catches your eye and enjoy that holiday feeling at home l

Beat the summertime bluesadvance. ask the family, including little ones and particularly teenagers, to pick out the clothes they want to bring a week early.

as much as you can, choose flights that avoid red-eye wake up calls or late night arrivals. Suss out holiday destinations with something for everyone by way of pursuits. Many hotel complexes have sports as well as daily yoga available so that

all tastes are catered for.

Your wish listSummer is a fabulous time for doing the things you never seem to have enough time to do during the rest of the year. Make a list of books, restaurants and activities. Then map them out over the weeks ahead. after all, if you meet your mum, sister or friends every week why not change the destination to a castle, new wine bar, country market, or local festival instead? all you need is a good imagination and, if you can’t think of anything, check out the local paper or notice board in the supermarket. u

Keeping the holiday feeling

School’s outMany of us feel that it will be fantastic when the children have their holidays and we don’t have to get up early for the school run. However the inevitable boredom factor can set in quite soon and we are plagued with the old ‘what will i do’ scenario.

Summer camps are a great idea for the younger children and even teenagers. Do make sure that you pick ones that your children are genuinely interested in and, preferably, where they’ll see some familiar faces. There’s nothing worse than being called in to rescue an unhappy little one who has been faced with a sea of new people they don’t feel comfortable with.

WE aLL love the summer in theory. But it can be a tough time for many of us. Here are some simple holistic tips to help you through the difficult patches so you do have a season of fun and relaxation.

Perfect tanHaving a healthy glowing suntan is great. But nowadays we have to remember the ozone layer – or the lack of it. We often forget that suntans only became fashionable in the 1920s with French fashion icon Coco Chanel. Before that only labourers had tans and the richer you were, the whiter your skin.

now it’s nearly the reverse. Many of us are fair-skinned and have to keep a close eye on how much daily sun we get. There’s an easy way to achieve exactly the colour you want while getting some sun (a great source of vitamin D). in the morning put on your total or partial all-day sun block, let it dry in then take a rub-on fake tan and massage it into your skin until you are the colour you want to be.

That way you can go out into the world looking good, fully protected and don’t have to worry about applying more. Shower it off that night. if you like overnight fake tan and you can apply it well then go ahead. But make sure you can still put on your sunscreen the next day.

Going abroad?Who doesn’t absolutely love the idea of getting away from it all in an exotic foreign place? it might sound brilliant but there can be a lot of stress in preparing and then actually transporting ourselves to our holiday destination.

Everyone takes time off together at Christmas, so there tends to be a natural wind-down at work. But in the summer we have to leave work in such a way that someone else can take over. This can be very stressful and tiring.

Then we have the packing to do, which can be very off-putting now that many airlines have weight restrictions on luggage. Many of us dread the flights especially if it’s a long journey and your legs are squeezed into a small space on the plane. is it any wonder that we arrive in a frazzle?

Pace yourself and start preparing to wind down weeks in advance. Tell people when you will be away and schedule for it in advance. Start preparing to hand over work files by having them ready in

Family outings are another terrific way to keep everyone occupied and have fun at the same time. Pick somewhere that you and the children have always wanted to go. or get all the family to pick a place and rotate the visits.

Say it’s the Viking adventure around Dublin. ask everyone to do something before the day arrives – look up Vikings on the internet, make funny hats, draw a Viking family, invent a song, pack a picnic that Vikings would eat (you might have to be very inventive here – hairy hog sandwiches anyone?). as a professional auntie, i find these special days a fantastic way to catch up with the extended family at a fairly relaxed time of year l

Summer can be a bummer. But KAREN WARD has some advice on how to make sure you’re optimistic expectations come right.

FOR FISH it has to be whitewine unless you’re serving

paella, whose earthy Spanishflavours combining sea food,

spicy chorizo and chicken willnot be overwhelmed by the

stronger reds.

White and rosé must always beserved chilled to preserve the crispness

of the flavours. If allowed to warm up,whites can become oily or sour and therosés sickly and unpleasant.

Never fill the glass more than two-thirdsfull. This allows the wine to breathe and theflavours to expand. I know that sounds like

pretentious twaddle, but I’ve found thatwine drunk from a brimming glass is un-pleasant. The idea is to sip and savour, anda very full glass seems like a child clam-ouring for attention. Some suggestions are:

Rocca Bella Pinot Grigio: An Italian wine,light and crisp, with an apple blossomsmell. Cuts through oils and sauces and re-freshes the palate. €8.99, most supermar-kets

Vina Decana Rosado: A mellow, fruity roséfrom Spain’s Requena region. Beautifulraspberry colour and scent, with hints ofcherry. Blended by Calvet winemakers forAldi, it’s excellent value at €5.99.

Cono-Sur Sauvignon Blanc: AChilean producer with a crisp,clean classic Sauvignon taste.Smells of ap-ples and sun-shine. €8.99,Supervalu,Dunnes.

MARGARET HANNIGAN’S finallybeen converted to fish.

I’M GOING to let you in on a teeny-tiny secret. For along time, fish and I didn’t see eye to eye.

To me they were cold, scaly things, with scary feath-ery bones waiting to choke you, and possessed ofinsidious smells that catch the back of your throatand squeeze it.

Of course, I’d heard about how fish was so low infat, and full of protein and those lovely Omega oilsthat keep you limber as an eel well into your eight-ies. But I still couldn’t go there. I don’t quite knowwhen my epiphany happened, but I think there wasa very good battered cod involved.

From there, I progressed to the fishmonger. Now,this really is a key point for anyone interested in eat-ing fish. Fish tastes and smells best when it’s fresh-est. That’s difficult to achieve in a supermarket, butvery possible in a good fish shop supplied with thedaily catch.

A 500g fish will generously feed one, and around750g will feed two. And it can be skinned, filleted,and cut into dinner-sized portions in the shop. Askquestions, try recipes, be brave. Check out theBord Iascaigh Mhara website (on Google) for freerecipes and tons of information about outlets inyour area.

Now that you’ve bought your fish, how do youcook it? Quickly, is the answer.

Less dense and more delicately flavoured thanmeat, fish likes a light touch. For shallow frying,use olive oil or a half oil/half butter mix, and haveabout 3mm of really hot oil in the pan before thefish goes in. Frozen fish should be thawed first, oth-erwise the temperature of the oil drops dramati-cally and the fish is oily, rather than crisp.

For deep frying, the pan should be one-third full ofhot oil, with the fish at room temperature and coated inbatter, breadcrumbs or flour to seal it against the extremeheat and give it a nice crisp crunch. For grilling, have meltedbutter or olive oil ready for basting, or you’ll end up withshrivelled, rubbery articles. Alternatively, marinate the fishin a mix of oil and flavourings and grill or barbeque.

You can also steam, bake, or poach. One ofthe most popular methods is to simply layit on a large piece of buttered baking paperor foil together with some butter, a dash ofwine and some herbs. Parcel it up and bakein a hot oven for around twenty minutes. Ifit still looks translucent give it another fewminutes, but not too many.

Or take a piece of puff pastry roughly twicethe size of your fish, spread 1–2 table-spoons of couscous on one half, lay somelemon and herbs on top, then the fish. Puta knob of butter and some seasoning ontop, then fold over the pastry, and pinch theedges to make a pastry envelope. Brushwith beaten egg and bake in a hot oven for20 minutes before serving with a greensalad or any green vegetable. The contrastof light, flaky, pastry with moist, butteryfish is delicious.

A quick word about shellfish. These reallymust be fresh, and from unpolluted waters,or they can make you very sick indeed. Lob-sters and crabs must be cooked when stillalive and kicking, and require the skill of abrain surgeon to extract the meat whencooked.

Clams and mussels are easier – just stayaway from any that remain closed aftercooking. They’re not safe. Oysters are eatenraw, and opening them takes skill and prac-tice, with minor injuries likely for beginners.

Then there’s squid and octopus, which areactually molluscs who have turned them-selves inside out and can just be choppedup and fried after you’ve de-inked them.And, no, I never have �

2928 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

From the kitchen

MARGARET HANNIGAN givesadvice on a scaleof one to ten.

1. Go to the seaside.Fish are freshest at thedock.

2.Or get a rod andsit by a river.

3.Frozen fish isgenerally of a goodstandard and retainstaste and texture well.

4.Look for sequin-bright scales, awide-awake eye andplump, moist flesh.

5.Avoid fishthat is dull,dry-looking, or

smells bad.

6.Try not to overcook.Unlike meat there is norare, medium, or well-doneand it’s a matter of aminute between flakyperfection and rubbery mess.

7.Check very carefully fortiny bones, particularly when

children are eating.

8.Find a nice helpfulfishmonger and give them yourbusiness. In supermarkets fishoften seem to be an awkwardadjunct of the butcher’s counter.

9.Avoid anything bigger thanyou. Or anything that you don’trecognise.

10.When rambling along theshore, be careful where youpick your periwinkles andmussels. You could betrespassing on someone’s

patch. And you need to besure the water is clean.

Fishy business

When the boatcomes in

Fish fingerlickin’ goodThis is a recipe for home-made fish fingers, from TheRiver Cottage Family Cook-book, a down-to-earth volumewith an excellent chapter onall things fishy.

And todrink…

Ingredients: (For 16 or so)

� 3 slices slightly stale bread,crusts removed.

� Skinned fillets of firm fish suchas cod, pollack or haddock (about 450g)

� 4 tbsps plain flour� 1-2 free-range eggs� 2 tbsps sunflower oil� Knob of butter� Salt and black pepperHeat oven to 120C/Gas mark 1/2, tokeep the first batch of fish fingerswarm while the others are cooking, asyou won't fit them all in the pan in onego.

Make nice, small, breadcrumbs withthe bread. Cut the fish into chunkystrips and feel each one carefully forany small bones. Take three shallowbowls, and place the flour, seasonedwith salt and pepper in the first. Putthe egg(s) into the second one andwhisk. And put the breadcrumbs in thethird.

Roll each fish strip in the flour, shakingoff any excess. Then swim it in the egg,letting any excess drip off. Press it intothe crumbs to coat. Place on a cleanplate ready for frying.

Heat the butter and sunflower oil overa medium heat. When the butter startsto foam, place some fish fingers in thepan. But don’t overcrowd them or theheat of the oil will be dispersed andthey’ll go soggy. Cook for 2–3 minseach side, then transfer to a cleanplate lined with kitchen paper, andkeep warm in the oven. Add more oiland butter to the pan as necessarywhile cooking. Serve with homemadewedges or fried potatoes. And ketchup,of course!

WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

Lobsters and crabs

require the skill of a brain

surgeon to extract the meat.

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IN THE stampede to sow vegetable seeds in the spring, we sometimes forget that the process of bringing on crops should be a continuous, over-lapping affair. Vegetables like Florence fennel, purple-skinned kohlrabi, spring greens and the wonderful oriental veg can be sowed in the spring.

If you want to harvest oriental greens like mizuna, pak choi, choi sum and chinese cabbage this autumn, sow in late July. This year I am growing a beautiful red leafed pak choi, which would look ever so attractive grown in the ornamental garden. I got this from C&N Seeds in England.

Sow your salad crops for the autumn and winter harvest in late summer and avoid ever using that disgusting pre-washed lettuce in a bag. There is also a wonderful range of winter greens including lamb’s lettuce, rocket, purple mustard and all year round lettuce. Remember that lettuce only germinates well at low temperatures. If the soil rises above 25°C, germination is erratic.

Blight on potatoes tends to appear towards the end of July. One precaution is to spray with bordeaux mixture at the beginning of July and again in a fortnight if heavy rains ensue. Sometimes this works, sometimes it doesn’t. My friend Kluas Laitenberger told me to spray the potatoes with milk diluted in a little water to prevent blight. It sounds good to me and it’s what I’ll be doing this year.

Sow some more peas now for a late summer harvest. Start lifting your garlic once the leaves start to turn yellow. They can be dried on the ground if the weather is dry and hung up in bunches under cover.

Order Japanese onions and garlic for autumn planting. The term Japanese onion is currently used for the hardy, early maturing varieties of bulbing onion developed by the Japanese. They are sown in late summer/early autumn and mature in early summer, before the spring-planted crop is ready. ‘Senshyu semi-globe yellow’ and ‘radar’ are good varieties currently available. Mr Middleton is a good source for these.

Crops to sow outside in July and August include Chinese cabbage, spring onions, lettuce, beetroots, radishes, spinach and spring cabbage l

SUMMER IS upon us and all our work should now be paying off. Gardeners are renowned for finding it hard to sit back and simply enjoy their gardens; there is always a bit of weeding, watering or staking to do. But the most important thing to do now is to spend time sitting and walking - and even talking to the plants - in your garden.

I would like to introduce you to a few of my favourite flowering plants this summer. They are all easy to grow and have a long season of interest.

Agastache is a short-lived perennial, which I grow through my sunny borders. I sow the seeds in March and have plants ready for planting out in well drained fertile soil at the end of May.

I use varieties called Agastache ‘liquorise blue’ and ‘herons wood mist,’ which start flowering in July and continue right into winter. They have spikes of violet flowers, smelling deliciously of aniseed, which are adored by bees and butterflies.

Like many long-flowering perennials, this one tends to be short-lived, though reasonably hardy. The winter silhouette

Green fingers

damage. They are happiest in cool, damp conditions where they don’t dry out. After their first flush of flowers, cut them down and they will repay you with another flowering later in the season. In the spring propagate large clumps by dividing them and replanting, giving them a good feed of well-rotted manure.

I am very fond of the claret reds of cultivars such as Astrantia major ‘ruby wedding’ and Astrantia ‘hadspen blood’. At the moment my favourite is one called Astrantia ‘boo anne’ with its wonderful silver and pink flowers from May to October. I recommend that you only buy Astrantias when you can see them in flower as they tend to cross-pollinate like mad creating plants with a broad range of colours.

You might already know Echinacea for its use as a medicinal remedy. Scientific studies have suggested that the use of the herb increases the action of the body’s immune system by as much as 30%. I use it myself when I feel a cold coming on and I always manage to stop it progressing. u

JIMI BLAKE says it’s time to sit back and enjoy some summer colour in your garden. But there are just one or two little jobs…

SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009 30 31WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAzINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

Your vegetable garden

One-year plantsperson’s course THIS LECTURE and garden-based course is designed to give a thorough understanding of a broad range of plants from the common and reliable to the rare and unusual. The course, run by Jimi Blake with guest lecturers, is based in Hunting Brook gardens with tours to other gardens and nurseries.

It’s especially suited to the horticultural student, keen gardener or garden designer with a basic knowledge of plants. The course takes place on 12 Saturdays throughout the year from September 2009 to August 2010. The first class is on 19th September. The cost is €895 and can be payed in installments.

Contact Jimi on Tel: 01- 458-3972 or 087-285-6601. Email: jimihuntingbrook.com or visit www.huntingbrook.com l

Spending hours with summer flowers

But Echinacea is equally useful for its striking purple-pink flowers which stand proud and tall in my borders from the beginning of July to October. The flower heads attract butterflies and bees with their honey scent.

Echinaceas are easy to grow in average soil that is not very wet in winter. I am constantly asked, why have I lost my Echinacea? I believe the reason is that slugs have a liking for them and seem to devour them in some gardens as they start to grow.

They are easy to grow from seed, taking three years to flower from seeds. If you want to plant Echinaceas, I suggest you stick to the ordinary Echinacea ‘rubinstern’ which is a good reliable perennial unlike other Echinacea cultivars which seem to die out after the first winter.

One important job to do this time of year in the ornamental garden is pruning wisteria by shortening side shoots to about 20cm. Then tie in the new growth to extend the coverage over your wall or trellis. Don’t be tempted to feed your Wisteria as this will only encourage more leaves and fewer flowers.

Deadhead roses and dahlias on a regular basis and sprinkle the petals on your compost heap. If you’re watering your garden, give it a good soak because watering a little causes the roots to grow near the surface where they will dry out very quickly during dry spells.

If your indoor plant is already too big to go into a larger pot, I suggest giving the plant a top dressing by removing the top 2.5-5cm of the old compost, taking care not to damage the plant’s roots, and replacing it with fresh moist compost to which a small amount of fertilizer (osmocote) has been added. Firm in the compost and water l

of the seed head is also beautiful and much appreciated by blue tits and bullfinches for food through the winter months. I tend to lose most of mine in the winter due to my hungry slugs and the frosts I get with a garden at 1,000 feet above sea level. So I end up growing them from seed each spring and treating them like an annual.

Astrantia is another of the top class herbaceous perennials for this time of year. Their flowers have a very interesting and beautiful shape. The wiry stems branch into several flower heads, each a posy of tiny florets, arranged in a dome with a collar of bracts, and flower with me from mid-May until autumn.

Astrantias are tough and can even withstand a bit of slug

“Only buy Astrantias when you can see them in flower as they tend to cross-

pollinate like mad creating plants with a broad range of colours.”

Above: Agastache seed head in Winter.Left: Agastache ‘Herons Wood Mist’.Far left: Astrantia ‘Boo Anne’.

But where Down ey Jr has boldly gone,trans form ing himself from drug-addled in mate to block buster actionhero, others are sure to follow. Earlierthis year, Ryder popped up in JJAbrams’ entertaining re boot of theStar Trek franchise. Her turn asSpock’s mother caught audien ces in acollective moment of re collection forthe former star and kicked off a periodof potentially sustained on-screen pre -sence.

RenaissanceIn July, Ryder joins Robin Wright Pennand Keanu Reeves in The Private Lives ofPippa Lee, a drama about marital infid -elity and mental breakdown. Later thissummer, she stars in The In formers,adapted from the Brett Easton Ellisnovel about a series of amoral char -acters in 1980s Los Angeles. Theactress will no doubt hope that the filmprovides her career a similar shot inthe arm as another Ellis adaptation,American Psycho, did for ChristianBale.

On set, Ryder perhaps couldn’t havehelped but feel a sense of fellowshipwith another of her co-stars, MickeyRourke. A superstar of the 1980s,Rourke has undergone his own careerrenaissance, re-emerging from scrap -ing barrel-bottoms (see Harley David -son and the Marlboro Man) to beingOscar nominated for The Wrestler.

While Rourke and Downey Jr are set tostar in the blockbuster sequel Iron ManII, Ryder, Star Trek appearance aside,seems to maintain a preference forsomewhat smaller films. Alongside The

Private Lives of PippaLee and The In form -ers, she also stars inthe Polish brothers’comedy, Stay Cooland has recentlystat ed that a sequelto the cult classicHeath ers is in theworks.

So as Winona thank -fully turns her atten -tion back to justtrying to stealscenes, we can im -agine the endlessother Norma Des -monds rattlingaround their SunsetBoulevard man sions

waiting for their fairy godmother tocome calling. Cuba Gooding Jr orGeena Davis perhaps? �

side Adam Sandler in Mr Deeds (2002),and smaller roles in films like RichardLinklater’s A Scanner Darkly (2006), theactress has kept a dec idedly low profileof late.

TalentThis is all a far cry from her formerglory. Ryder garnered a cult followingin the late 1980s after charming aud -iences as the feisty young heroine inTim Burton’s Beetlejuice (1988) andEdward Scissorhands (1990).

Her public persona and roles in filmssuch as the acerbic high-school com -edy Heathers (1989) and Ben Stiller’sReality Bites (1994) cemented herplace as a poster girl for ‘GenerationX’. She even provided inspiration for apop-punk band, The Wynona Riders.

Through the 1990s, a judicious choiceof movie roles saw her feted as a risingtalent. She featured alongside DanielDay Lewis and Michelle Pfeiffer inMartin Scorcese’s lush period pieceThe Age of Innocence (1993) andstarred in a well-received adaptation ofLittle Women (1994), as well as thedrama Girl, Interrupted (1999).

But Ryder’s fall from grace, after thatembarrassing and much publicisedbout of kleptomania, effectively re -duced her to a punch line. Thereseemed little indication of her carvingout a path back to the top, or even themiddle ranks, especially when WoodyAllen failed to secure insurance in2002 for both her and Robert DowneyJr for roles in Melinda and Melinda.

HOLLYWOOD HAS a rich tradition offalling stars changing course to followa renewed ascending trajectory. In the1930s Katherine Hepburn was con -sidered box-office poison after a stringof flops. But her career was revitalisedwith The Philadelphia Story and the rest,as they say, is history.

Today, fading stars and starlets yearnto emulate John Travolta, saved fromfurther straight-to-video embarrass -ments by Quentin Tarantino’s PulpFiction, or Robert Downey Jr, whotraded the orange of a California corr -ectional facility jumpsuit for the redand yellow of Iron Man.

This year’s case in point is WinonaRyder who, since her arrest for shop -lifting in 2001, has been on somethingof a hiatus from our screens. Save fora best-forgotten performance along -

At the movies

32 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

MORGAN O’BRIENsays Winona Ryderis finally coming infrom the cold after

her 2001 shopliftingarrest, and doing

what she does best.Stealing scenes.

WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS 33

Bruno (10th July)

With both Ali G and Borat put out to pasture,Sacha Baron Cohen brings flamboyant fashionmodel Bruno to the big screen. Expect to seeunsuspecting Americans being subjected touncomfortable interviewing.

Moon (17th July)

A sci-fi drama directed by Duncan Jones, formerlyZowie Bowie, Moon stars Sam Rockwell workingas an astronaut alone on a lunar mining station.

The Taking of Pelham 123(24th July)

Director Tony Scott remakes a 1970s classic, with John Travolta as a train robberpitting his wits against Denzel Washington’s train controller. The original, with WalterMatthau, deserves to be better regarded and is well worth checking out.

The Ugly Truth(7th August)

A by-the-numbers, oppositesattract, romantic comedy withKatherine Heigl and GerardButler as reporters at logger -heads but... well, you know therest.

InglouriousBasterds (21st August)

Quentin Tarantino returns with atitle to annoy copy editors and, judging by his Cannes appearance, giant ego intact.Led by Brad Pitt, the titular ‘Basterds’ are a US Army division on a mission to scalpNazis in WWII.

500 Days ofSummer(4th September)

Joseph Gordon-Levittand Zooey Deschanelstar in an offbeat rom -antic comedy about ahope less romantic whofalls in love with a girlwho doesn’t believe intrue love.

Ryding back from the sunset

Summer sceneIn the meantime, this summer also bringswith it the usual mixed bag of cinematicconfections says MORGAN O’BRIEN.

�

35WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS34 Solution difficultSolution easy

Across: 1.Apricot 5. Ergot 8. Tudor 9. Theorem 10. Chicago 11. Taiga 12. Wigwam 14. Tatami 17. Caber 19. Bushido 22. Illicit 23. Match 24. Paris 25 Decorum. Down: 1. Antic 2. Redwing 3. Curia 4. Tattoo 5. Electra 6. Gorki 7. Timpani 12. Wickiup 13. Aurochs 15. Twister 16. Abated 18. Balor 20. Sumac 21. Ogham

Summer 2009 Crossword SolutionsSee page 48 for the competition winners from Issue 5.

Autumn 2009 Soduko Solutions(From page 48.)

No moonOn the subject of The Who, this time 30 years ago the band did the unthinkableand ventured on tour without drummer Keith Moon who had died the previousSeptember.

‘The Who and Friends Roar In’ concert took place at Wembley stadium on 18thAugust 1979. (The same year, Wembley saw Alan Sunderland score the last-minute winner to help Arsenal beat Manchester United 3-2 in the FA cup final.Totally irrelevant I accept, but always worth a mention).

‘The Who and friends’ bill also featured The Stranglers, Nils Lofgren and a youngAustralian outfit called AC/DC. A classic excerpt from one review reads: “Theweather was good but there was surfeit of booze. Despite there being bars atthe venue many brought their own booze and others sampled the killer scrumpythat was on sale for £4 a gallon. Many only needed half a pint and they wereeither rendered legless, or sick, or both.”

My own fascination with The Who started in the mid-1970s, aged approximatelyten. My mate’s older brother was a fanatic and the album covers were fantastic(particularly The Who Sell Out). At that time we only had RTÉ One and, on Fridaynights, we’d settle down to Margaret Tisdall (aka Peggy Dell, born 1905) ticklingthe ivory and warbling Among my Souvenirs having swallowed a bag of gravel.

Apparently Peggy appeared on the Late Late Show and viewer reaction was sopositive she was given her own TV series. That’s rock’n’ roll for you! Viewerreaction? What else was there to react to? Sex was taboo. Match of the Day (akacross-channel soccer) was on a foreign station, and the radio was full of diddle-dee-i music.

When cable TV finally arrived (generally refereed to as The Pipe) we finally gotchoice – only to have our hopes dashes by the woeful reception. “The pipe isgone again. I wonder has anybody rang them.” The breakdowns were usuallybecause of the weather. Too sunny; too windy; too rainy; too cloudy. Basicallytoo much weather.

But by 1979 things had improved. The Who not only toured that year (includinga tragic concert in Cincinnati where 11 fans died). They also released two films:the documentary The Kids are Alright and the eagerly awaited Quadropheniawhich, as our luck would have it, was banned in Ireland for its “large amountsfor sex, violence, profanity and drug use.” Sunday World anyone? �

5.15 (Quadrophenia, 1973)Rock’s best testament to the proudoutsider. This stand-out track from theawesome Quadrophenia features greatbrass and a highly disciplined Keith Moon.

Behind Blue Eyes (Who’s Next, 1971)A mostly-acoustic classic. Daltrey deliversthe caustic lyric with Hannibal Lecter-stylemenace.

Substitute (Single, 1966)Pete Townsend at his lyrical best. At leastI’ll get my washing done…

Squeeze Box (The Who by Numbers, 1975)Slightly smutty (in a Confessions of aWindow Cleaner type of way) but highlymoving love song with a terrific back beat.

Won’t Get Fooled Again (Who’s Next, 1971)The band’s most overtly political offering.Takes the kop-out of “they’re all the same”to an angrier level.

I’m a Boy (Single, 1966)“I’m a boy and my ma won’t admit, I’m aboy, I’m a boy and if I say I am I get it.”Wonderfully deranged!

I Can See For Miles (The Who Sell Out, 1967)Beautifully harmonised flagship track fromthis marvellous album.

The Kids Are Alright (My Generation, 1965)The beat that beats Mersey Beat. And thelyrics break your heart into a thousandpieces.

Long Live Rock (Odds and Sods, 1974)Unlikely roll-along rock band bio. Neverbettered in the genre.

Mary Ann With The Shaky Head (The Who Sell Out, 1967)Classic 1960s Who sound, complete withboyish naughty lyric and laced withhumour.

Play it loud

SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

RAYMOND CONNOLLY SOMETIMES YOU wonder what motivates countless rockstars to embark on world salvation crusades. Recently Idiscovered The Who’s Roger Daltrey is president of theTeenage Cancer Trust (has been for many years, in fact).

The fact that Daltrey quietly went about this work for manyyears confirmed what a regular guy he is. Compare that tothe likes of His Bonoship releasing 1,683 white doves in thename of salvation and tax reduction in the Benelux coutries.

I recall a BBC interview when Daltrey was quizzed about hisavoidance of the high jinks and drink-and-drug-filled carnage

for which The Who were renowned in the sixties and seventies.His matter of fact response was along the lines of: “I never reallydid much. Pete wrote the songs and I’d just turn up and sing'em. Luckily I was pitch perfect.” A legend.

This year, the Teenage Cancer Trust was the nominated charity atArsenal, where Roger is a season ticket holder. But

how’s this for honesty? Daltry admits that in the1960s he was a regular “up the Bush,”

watching his local heroes Queens ParkRangers. He lost touch with the game andstarted going to Arsenal in the 1980s at therequest of his young son.

None of your celebrity ‘lifelong supporter’buffoonery from our man. In a recent issueof 4-4-2 magazine, star of the cult 1970s

classic Confessions of a Window CleanerRobin Askwith pans Phil Collins for being aformer regular “up the Bush” before lateremerging as a “lifelong” Spurs fan! As JimRoyle would say: “Lifelong my a*se,

Barb”.

Rock god and regular guy

“Daltrey was quizzed about his avoidance of the

high jinks and drink-and-drug-filled

carnage for which The Who were

renowned in the sixties and seventies.”

Whos top 10‘1

2345

678910

4 6 7 8 1 9 5 2 3

2 3 9 4 5 7 6 8 1

1 5 8 2 3 6 4 9 7

8 9 2 1 4 3 7 5 6

3 7 5 6 9 2 8 1 4

6 1 4 5 7 8 2 3 9

5 8 1 3 6 4 9 7 2

9 2 6 7 8 1 3 4 5

7 4 3 9 2 5 1 6 8

4 5 8 2 6 1 7 9 3

3 2 7 8 4 9 1 5 6

6 1 9 3 5 7 4 2 8

7 9 5 6 3 4 8 1 2

2 3 1 7 9 8 6 4 5

8 6 4 1 2 5 3 7 9

5 8 6 4 1 2 9 3 7

9 4 3 5 7 6 2 8 1

1 7 2 9 8 3 5 6 4

�

From the authorBook reviews

WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS 37

I’M JUST back from holidays, when Ilove a gripping read while I relax.Mary Malone’s third novel Never TearUs Apart fits the bill exactly. Hailingfrom Bandon, County Cork, Maryjuggles her time between her jobin the Central Statistics Office,being a wife and mother of twoboys, and writing.

I caught up with her early onemorning just before she setout to do some book signingsand publicity for the newbook, which is a mix of love,romance, jealously, mistrust,deception, revenge and crime.The two central char ac ters

Vicky and Ariel are the onlywomen working in a financial

investment firm, both putting on abrave face while their worlds are

falling apart.

I’m bound to ask if they are based onreal people. “I do my best to steeraway from that. I name them, andthen they come to life over time.Never Tear Us Apart is based on theidea that you work very closelywith people, partic ular in anoffice environment. You share alot of information about family,finance, relation ships andhome, but you really don’thave a clue what is going onin people’s heads,” she says.

Love is the recurring theme in allMary’s books. So, is she a romantic atheart? “I’m with my husband since Iwas 18. I love romance and I’m anaffectionate person. Love is bothfantastic and difficult, and I try toexplore different sides of it. I think therecession will put so many peopleunder pressure. We had become moreconcerned with materialism, now wemust learn to focus more on ourrelationships. Love is about developingrelationships with our friends, siblings,parents, kids as well as our partners.”

Mary got into writing about six yearsago. A passionate reader, she dreamedof having her name on the spine of abook. But, like many others, her firstsubmission was rejected by thepublishers. She sees this as part of theapprenticeship for new writers.

“Submitting your first novel is likesending your child to school andhoping everyone likes them the wayyou do. My first effort was neverpublished. It wasn’t good enough. Ihadn’t studied the craft or how to writeproperly. But the rejections wereencouraging: we like your style, yourstory line, but you need to learn more,”she recalls.

She overcame the rejection by doing acourse in journalism and gettingwriting and publishing experience invarious local and national papers andmagazines. And eventually the break -through came.

“There’s a huge interest in writing andmany people wonder how to get pub -lished. There is no real answer. Justkeep at it,” she says.

Mary also got support from hercolleagues in the civil service. “I wasnervous about putting myself in thepublic domain but there was nonegativity. Especially in the CSO,everyone wishes you well. They buy thebook and ask you to sign it. It’s lovely.It makes it really personal,” she says.

Never Tear Us Apart is published byPoolbeg Crimson, priced €7.99. Findout more about Mary Malone atwww.marymalone.ie �

36 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

MARTINA O’LEARY speaks topublic servant and successful

author MARY MALONE,whose new offering explores

how little we really knowabout our officecolleagues.

A writeromantic

“Submitting your first novel is like sending your child to school and hoping everyone likes them the way you do.”

Irish publishersPoolbeg are synony -mous with discover -ing and nurturingnew exciting writingtalent. Their Crimson range showcaseswomen’s fiction with an edge, bringing adarker psychological drama to Poolbeg'spopular fiction list. Expect thrills, twistsand the uncovering of secrets and lies.

Poolbeg have given Work & Life one full

set of their Crimson range books to give away.

To be in with a chance of winning, answer the questionbelow and send your entry to Roisin Nolan, Work & LifePoolbeg competition, IMPACT, Nerney’s Court, Dublin 1.Entries by Friday 4th September please.

What country is Poolbeg based in?

Books competition

Norden exposureCLIPS FROM A LIFE by Denis Norden (Harper Perennial, £8.99 in the UK).

MOST READERS of this book will remember Denis Norden for hisseries ‘It’ll be Alright on the Night’, a compilation of cinema andTV outtakes and bloopers which ran for 29 years. Though he hadworked in television and radio for two decades prior to the firstshow, I imagine most of us would fail miserably if asked to as-sociate him with anything else.

This is a funny, quirky, book. Neither memoir nor autobiography, it’sa series of recollections and anecdotes that loosely follow the course of his life,which Benjamin Button-like, start at the end and work back to the beginning.

Clearly, Norden is drawn to compilation, and to the art of short and sharp ratherthan reflection and analysis. By and large, this makes for an entertaining skimacross the decades, and his stories are more hits than misses. But some of the peo-ple he refers to are not so much part of the golden age of light entertainment, asits Jurassic age.

I doubt whether too many readers are all that excited about The Crazy Gang, BudFlanagan, or even Groucho Marx. But they might like to hear more about the processof writing and producing a TV show, and perhaps hear Norden’s opinions of cur-rent TV offerings.

Norden himself sums it up thus: “As you grow older, not only do you lose your il-lusions, you lose your allusions as well.”

But this is a small caveat and two things shine out from this book. One is Norden’sabsolute love of words, and the other is his wit. His skill is to sift, collect, and dis-play with an erudite wit for our entertainment and, almost always, amusement.

Margaret Hannigan

The plot darkensA DARKER PLACE by Jack Higgins (Harper Collins, £17.99 in the UK).

THIS IS the latest novel from ‘the legend’ Jack Higgins as he is modestly referredto on the cover. Legend may be overstating it, but he is certainly prolific, with manyof his books having been made into films, including The Eagle has Landed.

Fans will recognise the group known as ‘the prime minister’s secret army’ includ-ing ex-IRA man Sean Dillon and Major Charles Ferguson. They can circumvent pro-tocol by their various skills picked up over many years in the world’s war zones.

This time their mission is to help Alexander Kurbsky, a famousRussian novelist who also has a distinguished army career, to de-fect to the West. Ferguson and the others hatch a daring plan tohelp him escape during a visit to Paris where Kurbsky is beingawarded the Legion of Honour. All is not as it seems though, asKurbsky is clearly working with the Russians.

The characters are defined largely by their actions, althoughthere is plenty of time given to dialogue. Violence is not aproblem to them. When necessary it is dispensed withoutconscience. If you like an action-packed plot that moves alongquickly you will probably like this.

Kathryn Smith More book reviews on page 38

�

�

More book reviews

38 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

Trust me, I’m a doctorBAD SCIENCE by Ben Goldacre (Harper Perennial, £8.99 in the UK).

DR BEN Goldacre is the author of the ‘Bad Science’ column in the Guardian newspaperand his book is about all the bad science used to promote everything from face creamsto cat food. (And on that point, exactly which ten cats did they ask, and were they in anyway related to the manufacturer?).

One particular gem I personally recall, is an ad solemnly informing us that, as two-thirds of our skin is comprised of water (which I think is forensically correct) it wasessential to slather on a particular brand of snake oil, or run the risk of significantportions of your person evaporating overnight! I mean it’s just so hard trying to rein-sert your appendix into an unmoisturised, vanishing abdomen first thing in the morn-ing.

But what has science got to do with me, I hear you ask? We just want to get to the’because I’m worth it’ part, don’t we?

Well, at a time when science is used to prove everything and nothing, from themeaningless statistics on the back of a cereal box to the use of the word ‘visibly’in cosmetics ads, Dr Ben thinks you should inform yourself. To this end, he de-constructs several popular mythologies surrounding among others, fish oil sup-plements, homeopathy, the MMR vaccine, and that well-known coprophiliac,Gillian McKeith – the chapter on her justifies the purchase price on its own!

Satirical and amusing, Goldacre cheerfully and intelligently illuminates the dif-ference between good and bad science. Rather than give you the answers, itteaches you how to ask the questions that will separate the ridiculous fromthe possibly helpful.

On a more sombre note, the chapter on vitamin pill entrepreneur Mathias Rath will makeyour blood boil and engrave upon your brain the bright new motto of hedge fund managers everywhere:

(cue spooky music and Halloween fright mask) Buyer Beware!

Margaret Hannigan

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IMPACT’S CENTRAL executive committee has endorsed a new strategy, which sets out the union’s core priorities in the public service in the immediate and medium term. The strategy focuses on defending members’ jobs, incomes, and pensions while protecting public services during the recession and beyond.

The document, called Protecting our members during the recession and beyond: IMPACT priorities and negotiating strategy in the public service, also outlines five areas for action to put the priorities into practice: negotiations, industrial responses, organisation, communications and campaigning.

The strategy reflects emergency motions adopted at each of the union’s divisional conferences in May.

The document, which is available on the members-only pages of IMPACT’s website, was drawn up in response to the need for an agreed plan or strategy to deal with the many challenges and attacks now facing IMPACT and its members.

union business

IMPACT members get news faster

IMPACT members can sign up for full access to our website – plus a monthly emailed news bulletin

– via www.impact.ie.

39WoRk & LIfE: ThE MAgAzINE foR IMPACT MEMbERS

IMPACT strategy promotespay and pension protection

IMPACT has told the government it wants explicit guarantees that there will be no cuts in public service pay or in the value of public service pensions, including the preservation of the existing taxation arrangements on the lump sum. It has also sought an agreed framework to deal with public service employment issues.

The union raised a number of other public sector matters in the recent talks, including the Towards 2016 interim pay deal, the public service levy, and outstanding payments due under the last benchmarking and review body reports.

No guaranteesIn mid-May, Taoiseach brian Cowen wrote to ICTU and confirmed that the government was willing to explore the possibility of an agreement on public service pay and related matters. he didn’t rule out the possibility of an agreement that contained the guarantees that IMPACT has sought. but he said this would only be possible as part of a deal that

also included radically improved flexibility, mobility and performance.

however, as Work & Life went to press, the government had not confirmed its willingness to give the pay and pension guarantees sought by the union. IMPACT general secretary Peter McLoone said this was a worrying sign that future attacks on public service pay and pensions might be under consideration.

Meanwhile, the government has set a deadline of September for applications to its early retirement scheme. If take-up is a high as expected, it is likely that this will lead to huge problems as the government’s recruitment and promotions embargo means the posts of those leaving will not be filled.

In the absence of a public service agreement, IMPACT has told members not to co-operate with the implementation of the employment embargo circulars, which seek to axe thousands of temporary public service jobs and impose an almost total embargo on appointments, promotions and acting-up payments.

Read more on early retirement and the jobs embargo on page 40.

Pho

to: C

onor

Hea

ly.

APPLICATIoNS To IMPACT’S small grants fund for Dublin’s inner city are now in after the 2009 scheme was launched earlier this month. The fund was established by the union in 2006 to support worthwhile local initiatives in education and intercultural development. So far, it has distributed over €100,000 in small grants to over 80 projects in the locality. Grants worth up to a total value of €50,000 will be made this year.

Members of the Incredibals Crew breakdance group and other young people who’ve benefitted from IMPACT’s scheme.

Community fund launched

Work & Life: The Magazine for iMPaCT MeMbers

union business

HEALTH CONFERENCE

Health on the brinkDissaTisfaCTion WiTh top management’s treatment of staff and services could soon lead to disputes between iMPaCT and the hse. Delegates at the union’s recent health and Welfare conference backed calls for an agreement to protect jobs, incomes and the value of pensions in the sector.

national secretary kevin Callinan told delegates that iMPaCT had won majorities of between 90% and 100% in a series of local industrial action ballots over management attempts to unilaterally cut jobs or reduce incomes. he pledged that the union would “defend every member” who followed union advice not to co-operate with the imposition of cuts.

iMPaCT’s health division executive has since decided to ballot members over hse plans to centralise all medical card services, which the union says will distance eligibility decisions from local health professionals and remove local support to medical card applicants.

Members in the sector have already been told not to co-operate with a draft hse circular, which would introduce a blanket embargo on recruitment and promotions and cut existing allowances paid to workers who take on extra responsibilities, while imposing massive changes in working practices.

Callinan told the conference: “i assure the government and the hse that, although this union has always sought a collective approach to tackling the problems in our health services, we are equally ready and able to take the other path if you choose to abandon the committed and loyal staff who work to provide health services.”

Divisional Cathaoirleach sophia o’reilly told delegates that essential health services would be damaged if continued political attacks on administrative staff led to major job losses. she said health workers had a “big problem” with bureaucracy at the top of the hse, but depended on administrative and other support staff to help them deliver vital front-line services.

EARLY RETIREMENT

Union fears service chaosiMPaCT beLieVes the government’s early retirement scheme, which closes to applications on 1st september, is set to create chaos in the public services. That’s because the current recruitment and promotions embargo prevents the filling of vacancies that arise from the scheme, and no thought appears to have gone into how the work will be covered.

in the absence of a public service agreement that includes pay and pension safeguards, the union has instructed its members not to cooperate with relocation or unpaid acting up arrangements, which public service management may seek to impose following a likely exodus of senior staff.

iMPaCT general secretary Peter McLoone says taking the most experienced tier of public servants out will have a huge impact on services. “The government seems to believe that those left behind will seamlessly ‘reorganise and restructure’ themselves to fill the gaps. it’s simply not going to happen,” he said.

The union has also criticised the government for sowing uncertainty over the future tax treatment of pension lump sums in an attempt to force staff to take up the early retirement scheme. it says this may lead to legal challenges, and has vowed to fight any change to the value of pensions, including through taxes.

The PUbLiC service recruitment embargo will increase risk in government decision-making because specialist civil servants are likely to take up the government’s early retirement scheme without being replaced, according to iMPaCT.

speaking at the opening of the union’s Civil service conference in May, iMPaCT’s divisional cathaoirleach Una geaney warned that an over-reliance on generalists was reducing civil service capacity to advise and warn the government on practical problems. she called for professional and technical staff to be properly valued to help avoid repeats of the poor decisions that had led to the recession.

Una said specialists had become poor relations in the civil service, where management was too comfortable in a generalist culture, and over-dependent on external consultants for advice.

“for too long, technical and professional staff have been seen as poor relations by senior civil service management. Comfortable in the generalist civil service culture, they have failed to value and nurture those with specialist skills – the engineers, architects, agricultural specialists, legal people, economists and many others – who can advise and alert the generalists to real practical problems and issues,” she said.

national secretary Louise o’Donnell told delegates that the Department of finance had identified civil service skills shortages in economics, financial management, pensions, statistics, law and iT in 2003, but failed to recruit the necessary staff. she speculated that the recruitment of 15 financial specialists into the positions identified by the Department could have helped avoid policies that led to the current recession.

she also accused civil service management of stalling on the introduction of staff mobility in the civil service after iMPaCT and other unions signed up to the principle. The ‘cross-stream mobility’ policy, which would allow staff to move across traditional demarcation boundaries, has still not been put in place six years later.

Embargo increases riskCIVIL SERVICE

40 41sUMMer/aUTUMn 2009

Toxic legacyDeLegaTes aT iMPaCT’s services and enterprises conference were told that a fair and sustainable economic philosophy, with a focus on job creation and job protection, is essential to economic recovery. Cathaoireach Pierce Dillon said workers and their families were now living the toxic legacy of the ‘boston over berlin’ economic philosophy. “at the peak of the economic boom, the irish political compass said that the pursuit of individual wealth, no matter how vast or at what cost, was always good for our economy. “it brought with it an extravagant culture of executive pay and bonus schemes, for which consumers, workers and taxpayers are picking up the tab,” he said.

IMPACT man heads trades counciliMPaCT’s PhiL Mcfadden has been elected as president of the Dublin Council of Trade Unions, which brings together representatives of all union branches in the capital. Phil, who was also recently elected to iMPaCT’s health & Welfare divisional executive, has been a member of the Dublin trades’ council for the last five years. “During that time, the council has been very influential and has organised some of Dublin’s biggest rallies, including the irish ferries rally and the health marches,” he said.

Ryan endorsedDelegates at iMPaCT’s civil service conference passed an emergency motion urging the government to immediately implement the recommendations the ryan report into institutional child abuse. Tom ryder of the union’s Probation and Welfare branch said the victims were the bravest people. “We owe it to them to ensure that the recommendations are implemented in full,” he said.

NEWS IN BRIEF...

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Local democracy a “sham”LoCaL goVernMenT is in danger of becoming “sham democracy” because a crisis in local authority funding has left councils without the resources they need to provide services, according to a top iMPaCT representative.

speaking at iMPaCT’s Local government, education and Local services conference in May, divisional cathaoirleach Tom Murray criticised the government for failing to invest in local services during the boom years. he said local authorities now faced a growing crisis as rates, development levies, planning and other local revenue streams dried up in the recession.

Tom said the crisis was compounded by a collapse in morale among local authority staff, caused by years of under-investment and government unwillingness to defend public services against constant attacks.

speaking to delegates representing over 20,000 local authority and education staff, he said ministerial efforts to establish an elected mayor in Dublin fell short of what was needed to reinvigorate local democracy. “Local services have been undermined not just by poor funding and under-investment but by a “government that has never been willing to stand up and defend them,” he said.

The conference also heard that a specialised worker in fingal County Council, whose two-year temporary contract cannot be renewed because of the government’s public service recruitment embargo, is to be replaced by consultants at a higher cost to taxpayers and ratepayers. iMPaCT official Denis Calnan said this was a graphic example of how the rigid implementation of the embargo will increase public service costs, while cutting job and services.

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT Vera Smyth retired from the union in March. Vera was IMPACT’s longest-serving staff member who had been with the union for over 40 years. She worked with three general secretaries: Harold O’Sullivan, Phil Flynn and Peter McLoone. Vera’s position will be filled by Val West, who is moving sideways from her current role as PA to the general secretary. Teresa Griffin will be moving in to Val’s former role.

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• Qualifyingforacontributorystatepensiononthebasisof pastandfuturePRSIcontributions.

It’sunlikelythatanyoneavailingof thisschemewillbeentitledtoanymeans-testedbenefits.ButthosewhohavebeenpayingclassAPRSI contributionsmaybe eligible for JobSeekersBenefitprovidedtheyareavailablefor,andlookingfor,ajob.Mostsuchpeople,however,haverelativelyshortservice.ClassAPRSIcontributionsbecamecompulsoryforthosejoiningtheserviceafter5thApril1995.Mostof thosewhojoinedbefore1995arepayingthespecialpublicsectorclassBPRSI,whichdoesn’tprovidecoverforJobSeekersBenefit.

ItisopentotheDepartmentof SocialandFamilyaffairstorefuse JobSeekersBenefit fornineweeks to someonewhohasvoluntarilyleftajobwithoutareasonablecause.It’sstillnot clear if thatwouldbeapplied in thecaseof thisearlyretirementscheme.

To qualify for Job Seekers Benefit later on, an applicantneedstohavepaidatleast104fullratePRSIcontributions

duringtheirworkinglivesand39contributionseitherpaidorcreditedinoneof anumberof yearsthatcurrentlystretchesfrom2005to2009.The39contributionshavealltobeintheonecalendaryear.

AnearlyretireewhohasneverpaidclassAPRSI,andwhotakes up a job in the private sector, could qualify for JobSeekersBenefitin2012.

ItisimportantinallcasestosignonforPRSIcredits.Thatwayyouwillmaintainyourentitlementstowidowandorphan

benefits.If youhaveworkedforatleastoneweekintheprivatesectorpriortosigningon,youwillbecreditedwithfullrateclassAcontributions.If yousignonwithouthavingworkedintheprivatesector,yourcreditswillbeatthemodifiedpublicsectorrate.Youcanonlysignonforcreditsif youareavailableforemploymentandlookingforajob.

Onceyougetyourfirstpost-retirementclassAcontributionyougetbonuscredits,knownaschangeof statuscredits,forallof thepreviouscalendaryearandthecurrentyearup the date of that contribution. So if you make yourfirst class A contribution on 1st September 2009 youimmediatelygetcredit for52contributions in respectof 2008 and 34 or 35 contributions in respect of the firsteightmonthsof 2009.

State pensionIt ispossible toqualify for a contributory statepensiononthebasisof havinganannualaverageof at least tenclassAcontributions fromthedateof firststarting topayPRSI,of anyclass,andreachingpensionage.Butonlythoseearlyretireeswhowere liable forclassAcontributions fora longperiodof theircareerswillfallintothatcategory.If theyreachpensionageafter6thApril2012they’llneedtohavepaidatleast520full-ratePRSIcontributions.

ButearlyretireeswhohavefewornopreviousfullratePRSIcontributionsmayqualifyforareducedpro-ratacontributorystatepensionif theyworkatleast260weeksintheprivatesector in the period between taking early retirement andreachingpensionage.If theyreachpensionageafter6thApril2012theywillneedtohavepaid520PRSIcontributionsovertheir working lives, but 260 of those can be in respect of publicsectoremployment.

Theactualpensionpayable isbasedonthemixof fullandmodifiedratecontributions.First,thetotalof bothisdividedbythenumberof yearssincethefirstcontributionwasmadetogiveanannualaverage.

Thataveragedecidesthemaximumpensiontowhichthepro-ratareductionisapplied.Forinstance,anannualaverageof 48ormoreclassAcontributionsgivesentitlementtoa fullcontributorypensionbutthatisreducedintheproportiontowhichtheclaimant’smodifiedcontributionsbeartohisorhertotalcontributions.

Let’s take an example. Tom has been either paying PRSIcontributionsorsigningonallhisworkinglife.Hehasaverageda full 52 contributions per year. When he reaches pensionage he has 520 class A contributions and 1,560 modifiedcontributions.If theywereallfull-ratecontributionshewouldbe entitled to a contributory state pension of €230.30 but because three-quarters of his total (1,560 out of 2,080)are modified-rate contributions, his pension entitlement isreduced to a quarter of €230.30 or €57.57.

Thosesocialinsuranceprovisionsareundoubtedlycomplicatedbutit isessentialtogetanunderstandingof yourpotentialentitlementsandactaccordinglyl

Your money

THEGOVERNMENT’Searlyretirementschememaynotmakemuch sense from a national point of view. It’s costly andcombinedwiththetotalbanonrecruitmentitcould,asIMPACTdeputygeneral secretaryShayCody told theunion’s recentServicesandEnterprisesDivisionconference,“decimateanddecapitatepublicservicesacrossthecountry.”

But,whateverabouttherightsorwrongsof thescheme,ithasbeen introduced and potentially eligible individuals have toexamineitinthelightof theirownparticularcircumstances.

Withsomeexceptions,theschemeisopentopublicservantswhowillbe50yearsof ageoroveron1stSeptember2009andwhohaveaccruedsome,butnotfull,pensionentitlements.Ithasbeenopentoapplicationssince1stMayandwillcloseon1stSeptember.Thoseacceptedfortheschemewillnormallyhavetoretireby30thNovember.

Is the scheme right for you? First, you need to work out your entitlements under thescheme.Thisarticleisnotdesignedtohelpyoutodothat.ThereisadetailedQ&AontheDepartmentof Financewebsite- http://www.finance.gov.ie/viewdoc.asp?DocID=5789.

Adecisioncan’tbebasedsolelyonfinancialconsiderationsbuttheymustplayamajorpartinthedeliberations.Inessence,itboilsdowntoabudgetingexercise,examiningincomeandexpenditurebeforeandaftertakingearlyretirement.

Outliningyourcurrentincomeandexpenditurepatternsistheeasypart.It’snotsomethingthatmanypeopledoonaregularbasis,particularlyinmiddleagewhenbudgetsareseldomastightastheymayhavebeenatanearlierage.Butit’simportanttosetdownabaselinewhenconsideringchange.Thenconsiderthefuturesimplyintermsof incomeandexpenditureandalltheelementsthatcouldpotentiallyinfluencethem.Let’shavealookateachinturn.

IncomeYour income post-early retirement can come from a rangeof sources,whichmightincludeyourpublicservicepension,savings and investments, income from a new job or socialwelfarebenefits.

The idea of taking up the new public service early retirement options may look attractive on the face of it. But COLM RAPPLE says you need to look at your finances before jumping in.

Yourpublicservicepensionisdecidedbythetermsof theearly retirement package and should rise in linewith paylevels in the service. When you reach normal retirementage you should be on a similar pension to someone whoisretiringthenwiththesameyearsof serviceasyouhavenow.Thatwillbe less thanthepensionyouwouldbeentitledto if youstayedinserviceuntilnormalretirementage.

The income you enjoy from existingsavings and investments will besupplementedbythereturnonyourtax-freeretirementlumpsum,10%of whichispayableonretirementand the remainder when youreach normal retirement age.That ‘remainder’ will be basedonpaylevelsatthattime.

There was an implied threat inMinisterLenihan’sbudgetspeechthat pension lump sums may beliablefortaxinfuture.Butanylumpsumpaid,orpayable,underthecurrentschemewillnotbesubjecttotax.

Althoughthisiscalledanearlyretirementscheme,thereisnoreasonwhysomeoneavailingof itshouldnottakeupanewfullorpart-timejob.Therearerestrictionsontakinguppublicsectoremploymentbutnonewithregardtotheprivatesector.

This is an option that has to be considered in the contextof personal preferences on the futurework-leisurebalanceand,of course,onthepossibilityof securingemploymentorbecomingself-employed.Therearealsoanumberof potentialsocialwelfarebenefitstowhichearlyretireesmaybeentitled,eithernoworinthefuture.Theyinclude:

• ImmediateentitlementtoJobSeekersBenefit

• FutureentitlementtoJobSeekersBenefitonthebasisof post-retirementPRSIcontributionsu

Do the early retirement sums add up for you?

4342 WORk&LIFE:THEMAGAzINEFORIMPACTMEMBERSSUMMER/AUTUMN2009

PRSI

RETIREMENTINCOME

SAVINGS

ENTITLEMENTS

CONTRIBUTIONS

BENEFITS

CREDITS

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Sport

The captains and the kingsIrish cricket is bucking the recessionary trend. But KEVIN NOLAN reckons the International Cricket Council is holding us back from greater success.

THE IRELAND cricket team was back on our TV screens and taking a more prominent spot on the sports pages of the national media after their recent exploits at the World Twenty20 competition in England. It might be time to make room in the wardrobe for another jersey to accompany your national, county, Munster and Leinster ensemble.

Two years on from their memorable campaign in the Caribbean, Phil Simmons’ side showed, yet again, that they can hold their own at the very highest level as they beat Bangladesh to qualify for the Super Eights stage for a second straight tournament.

They went on to frighten the life out of Sri Lanka in the second stages, falling short by just nine runs in a stunning performance at Lord’s cricket ground.

It’s a continuation of a successful run that has seen Ireland dominate the second tier of the international game, winning all the competitions they have entered in four-day, 50-over and the new Twenty20 format.

CoupIn many respects, the success of Irish cricket has been in inverse proportion to the ailing Irish economy over the last few years. Steady and sustained growth and success on the field have been matched with new professional structures that have led to increased funding from both the game’s governing bodies.

The fact that Cricket Ireland was able to announce a long-term sponsorship deal with RSA as the recession took hold was another major coup, with its heightened profile now seen as a marketable asset in the corporate world.

There has also been good news on the jobs front with the first two professional contracts handed out to Trent Johnston and Alex Cusack, with more in the pipeline as increased funding trickles down to the game here.

But there are still major hurdles to surmount to u

“The International Cricket Council has beena lazy teacher, congratulating its star pupil

but failing to realise its true potential.”

WoRk & LIfE: THE MAgAzINE foR IMPACT MEMBERS 4544 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

keep the graph rising in the right

direction over the coming years.

The biggest of these is the International Cricket

Council’s (ICC) reluctance to offer Ireland a seat at the top table,

which would bring with it a massive injection of cash for the Irish game.

In many respects Ireland has been like the talented child, completing every task asked of them and constantly striving to achieve more. The problem is the ICC has been a lazy teacher, congratulating its star pupil but failing to realise its true potential.

PressureCricket Ireland’s chief executive Warren Deutrom has used Ireland’s recent successes to increase the pressure on the sport’s governing body to offer the squad a defined route. It has called for Ireland’s inclusion in the future tours programme, the 12-month international fixture list to be announced in the coming months.

Deutrom said: “What does the ICC want us to do? How do we get from high-performance programme to the higher echelons of the world game? There is no road map for us. The issue brings to question the whole mission statement of the ICC high performance programme: what is it preparing teams for?”

“Three or four years from now there will be no new entrants

in to the cosy club of full test members. That is a significant frustration. It shows that despite the massive investment in the associate programme, costing over $300 million (€214 million) over seven years, there is no stepping stone from number one of the associate countries into the test world,” he said.

LureThe other elephant in the room is the loss of Ireland’s top players to England, where the lure of playing test cricket will always be too strong for our top stars.

Who knows how far Ireland could have gone in the World Twenty20 if Eoin Morgan and Ed Joyce were amongst the batting order? Certainly Morgan’s inventiveness in the shortest form of the game and ability to score runs against spin would have seen them past Sri Lanka and a possible spot in the semi-finals.

Sadly, the talented Dubliner was carrying the water for the England team after being dropped following their opening day loss to Holland and will not be eligible to play for Ireland.

Joyce hasn’t played for England since the world cup two years ago and is believed to be keen to return to the international fold with Ireland, although he will not be eligible again until 2011.

The problem is set to continue, with wicket-keeper Niall o’Brien showing his considerable potential with a fine tournament with the bat and behind the stumps, while 6 feet 8 inches opening bowler Boyd Rankin is sure to turn up on the radar of England’s selectors over the coming years.

Triumphs on the pitch continue but Irish cricket is fast learning that success brings its own problems l

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Inset (right) and main picture, Ireland wicket-keeper and rising star Niall O’Brien.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9

10 11

12 13 14 15

16

17 18 19 20 21

22 23

24 25

Across1. Lovely south Kerry town (7)5. Former Late Late show

presenter (5)8. Mayo patriot, Croke Park

Stand (5)9. Tir Chonail (7)10. City in south east France,

one time home of the Papacy (7)

11. Larry... renowned American musician (5)

12. He has the major role (6)14. Edict (6)17. It grows on soil (5)19. Forsake (7)22. Outside? No! (7)23. City in Northern Italy,

scene of famous 16 century church council. Also English river (5)

24. North Wexford Town (5)25. Enclosed in boxes (7)

Down1. East African country (5)2. Render ineffective or valueless (7)3. Member or descendant of a

prehistoric people who spoke Indo-European (5)

4. Concluding (6)5. Cloth or strip used in

dressing wounds (7)6. Kingly (5)7. Make greater (7)

46 SUMMER/AUTUMN 2009

12. No friend of Ireland, this Englishimperialist poet (7)

13. Susan ....... (1820-1906) American Suffragist (7)

15. Set right (7)16. Annoyance (6)18. Reptile (5)20. Mexican Indian (5)21. Acclaimed, famous (5)

Crossword composed by Sean Ua Creanaigh, Wexford

HOW TO PLAY: Fill in the grid so that every row,column and 3x3 box contains thedigits 1-9. There is no mathsinvolved. You solve it with reasoningand logic.

S U DO K U

Just answer five easyquestions and you could win €50.

ADD €50 to your holiday savings fundby answering five easy questions andsending your entry, name and address toRoisin Nolan, Work & Life prize quiz,IMPACT, Nerney’s Court, Dublin 1. We’llsend €50 to the first completed entrypulled from a hat.* You’ll find all theanswers in this issue of Work & Life.

1 The Who toured in 1979 without:

A Rehearsing

B Keith Moon

C A care in the world

2 Ordnance Survey Ireland was estab-lished in:

A 1729

B 1829

C 1929

3 Employers think most job applicants:

A Fail to prepare for interviews

B Avoid the questions

C Should get the job

4 This year’s Persil fashion award waswon by:

A Joanne Power

B Stella McCartney

C Paul Costelloe

5 Winona Ryder won cult status for:

A Shoplifting

B Roles in Beetlejuice and Edward Scissorhands

C Unusual religious views

The small print*You must be a paid-up IMPACT member to win. Only one entry per person (multiple entries will not be considered). Entries must reach us by Friday 4thSeptember 2009. The editor’s decision is final. That’sit!

win€50

Win Win Win

Prize quiz

Easy

Winners! The winners from competitions in the Summer issue were:

1 Tullamore Comp: Caroline Corcoran, Clerical Officer, Finance Department, Cork County Council, Annabella, Mallow, Co Cork.

2 Crossword: Noel Foley, Forest Service.3 Quiz: Michael Hoey, OPW. 4 Survey: Ursula Ramsell, Cork City Council.

Lots more competitions to enter in this issue!

PRIZE CROSSWORD

win€50

Difficult

Win €50 by completing the crossword and sending your entry, name and address to Roisin Nolan, Work & Life crossword, IMPACT, Nerney’s Court, Dublin 1, by Friday 4th September 2009.

We’ll send €50 to the first correct entry pulled from a hat.

The survey

1. What did you think of the articles in thesummer/autumn 2009 issue of Work & Life ?

Excellent �

Good �

Okay �

Bad �

Awful �

Comments ________________________________________

__________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

2. What did you think of the layout, style and pictures inthe summer/autumn 2009 issue of Work & Life?

Excellent �

Good �

Okay �

Bad �

Awful �

Comments ________________________________________

__________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

3. What were your favourite three articles?

1 __________________________________________________

2 __________________________________________________

3 __________________________________________________

4. What were your least favourite articles?

1 __________________________________________________

2 __________________________________________________

3 __________________________________________________

5. What subjects would you like to see in future issuesof Work & Life ?

1 __________________________________________________

2 __________________________________________________

3 __________________________________________________

6. What did you think of the balance between unionnews and other articles?

The balance is about right �

I want more union news �

I want less union news �

7. Any other comments? ______________________________

__________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

Name ________________________________________________

Address ______________________________________________

__________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

Email ________________________________________________

Phone________________________________________________

IMPACT branch ______________________________________

How do you likeWork & Life?WE HOPE you enjoyed this issue of Work & Life, the

magazine for IMPACT members. We want to hear yourviews, and we’re offering a €100 prize to one lucky

winner who completes this questionnaire.

Simply complete this short survey and send it to Roisin Nolan,Work & Life survey, IMPACT, Nerney’s Court, Dublin 1. You can also

send your views by email to rnolan@impact.ie.

We’ll send €100 to the first completed entry pulled from a hat.*

And don’t forget, we’re also giving prizes for letters published in the next issue.See page 21.

win€100

Your view

The small print*You must be a paid-up IMPACT member to win. Only one entry per person (multiple entries will not be considered).

Entries must reach us by Friday 4th September 2009. The editor’s decision is final. That’s it!

47WORK & LIFE: THE MAGAZINE FOR IMPACT MEMBERS

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2 9 1

1 2 3 4 9

4 3 6

3 6 2 4

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SUMMER/AUTUMN 200948

Commercial membership services

IMPACT has facilitated the provision of a number of national membership services and discount schemes on behalf of its members. These include Additional Voluntary Contribution Schemes (Pensions),Life Assurance, Salary Protection in the case of illness and Car, House and Travel Insurance Schemes. A number of local discount schemes are also negotiated by local branches.

The Union uses the size and composition of its membership base and, where possible, competition between the various service providers, to seek the best possible deals for the widest possible sectionsof our membership. It is probable that the majority of members will get better value from these schemes than if they sought the same service individually. However, this will not be true in all cases andthere will be occasions where individual members may, because of their specific circumstances, be able to get better value elsewhere. It is not possible always to ensure that all schemes will be acces-sible equally to all members and the scheme underwriters will not depart totally from their normal actuarial or risk assessment procedures and rules.

IMPACT does not make any claims as to the quality or reliability of any of these products/services and while advising members of the availability of the National Membership Services and DiscountSchemes does not endorse or recommend any particular product or service. IMPACT's role is that of facilitator to ensure that such schemes are available to its members. All contracts are directly betweenthe product/service provider and the individual member. IMPACT is not in any way a party to these contracts and will not accept any responsibility or liability arising from any act or omission on the partof the product or service provider. Neither IMPACT nor any member of its staff receives any fees or commissions or other rewards from these product or service providers arising from such schemes.

While IMPACT does occasionally provide such product/service providers with limited information regarding IMPACT branch and/or workplace representatives for the purpose of advertising such schemes,the Union does not make any personal data relating to individual Union members available to them for any purpose.

The Union requires that product/service providers agree to ensure that all such schemes comply with all lawful requirements including the Equal Status Act 2000.

Advertisements for agreed membership services will have an logo on them.

Some of the companies providing agreed membership services may offer other products or services (that are not as a result of any agreement or arrangement with IMPACT) directly to IMPACT members.The Union has no role whatsoever in relation to such products or services. Likewise, other product or service providers may make offers directly to IMPACT members through advertisements in the Unionnewspaper or otherwise. These do not arise as a result of agreements or arrangements with IMPACT and the Union does not ask members to consider availing of such products/services and accepts noresponsibility whatsoever for any such offers.

The product/service providers with which IMPACT has agreed the provision of membership services and/or discount schemes are as follows:

Brassington & Co. Ltd. Cornmarket Group Financial Services Ltd.Travel Insurance – all Divisions. Car Insurance – all Divisions.

Salary Protection and Life Assurance – Local Government and Health Divisions only.

Group Insurance Services (GIS) Marsh Financial Services Ltd.Car Insurance – all Divisions. AVC Schemes – all Divisions excluding Municipal Employees.House Insurance – all Divisions. Salary Protection and Life Assurance – Civil Service and Services & Enterprises Divisions only.

December 2004

DISCLAIMER (Approved by CEC 10th December 2004)

FACILITATED