News
War of words over job cuts proposal at GMIT
The Governing Body of GMIT is divided over proposals to axe staff from the payroll.
In an unprecedented move, a Governing Body member has publicly challenged GMIT President, Fergal Barry, over alleged “factually incorrect” statements made by him regarding proposed job cuts.
The email sent by Michael Geoghegan, non-academic member of the Governing Body, to Dr Barry, was copied to staff, and members of the Governing Body. It disputes a circular sent to staff last Thursday, in which Dr Barry said the Governing Body had approved financial projections to 2020 and a programme to eliminate last year’s budget deficit of €2.8 million over five years.
It included “a reduction of 22 posts for this academic year”, Dr Barry said.
But this is disputed by, Mr Geoghegan, who is also GMIT branch chairperson of trade union SPITU.
In his public rebuke, he said: “I have to write to you to state that I believe this communication to be factually incorrect in many regards and I would like to disassociate myself from all of its contents.”
Mr Geoghegan added: “It is my recollection that Governing Body did not approve a reduction of 22 posts for this academic year. What I recall was Governing Body approving programs and budgets . . . while the programs and budgets that were approved did include a proposal for a reduction of 22 posts in the institute, they also included the addition of 17 posts which is a net loss of just five.”
He said he was precluded from saying more because “I believe it would not be following proper protocol”.
When contacted, Mr Geoghegan refused to comment on the contents of his or Dr Barry’s email but he expressed concerns at cutbacks.
“As a governor, all matters relating to the Governing Body should remain in the boardroom,” he said.
“As a trade union man, and as SIPTU shop steward, I want jobs protected. The whole thing has been handled badly. If there are to be job losses, there needs to be opportunities to upskill and retrain.
“I haven’t been given any detailed plans about what jobs are going and who is going to do the work of the people that are let go. Management hasn’t told us what services they will no longer be providing,” said Mr Geoghegan.
Last week’s story in the Galway City Tribune detailing job losses were in the pipeline, prompted lecturers’ trade union, TUI, to voice its alarm.
Aidan Kenny, Assistant General Secretary of TUI, said the union, “is gravely concerned by reports that GMIT intends to cut jobs as a result of budget deficits. The institute of technology sector has already been the subject of severe cuts from the Higher Education Authority over the past five years. The proposal, by an independent consultant, that job cuts are an appropriate saving measure, is absolutely unacceptable to TUI.”
TUI has convened an emergency branch meeting for next Wednesday, May 10 where members will “discuss a response to both the severe funding cuts to the institute and this new threat.”
Mr Kenny added: “TUI will utilise all means to protect its members.”
For the second week in a row, GMIT did not respond to queries submitted by this newspaper. Des Mahon, chairman of the Governing Body, could not be reached.
Another member of the Governing Body, who asked not to be named, said “there’s war up there” in relation to the row between Dr Barry and Mr Geoghegan, and the proposed cuts. “People’s jobs are on the line so it is very sensitive,” the source said.
GMIT Students Union President, Michael Kerrigan, who is also a member of the Governing Body, said: “As we are currently in a poor financial situation cuts have been expected, however it is difficult for us to judge the direct impact of these cuts to students as we are unaware of what jobs will be lost.”
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
On the eve of completing his 150th marathon, an odyssey that has taken him across 53 countries, Loughrea’s Marathon Man has announced that he is planning to hang up his running shoes.
But not before Jarlath Fitzgerald completes another ten races, making it 160 marathons on the occasion of his 60th birthday.
“I want to draw the line in 2026. I turn 57 in October and when I reach 60 it’s the finishing line. The longer races are taking it out of me. I did 20 miles there two weeks ago and didn’t feel good. It’s getting harder,” he reveals.
“I’ve arthritis in both hips and there’s wear and tear in the knees.”
We speak as he is about to head out for a run before his shift in Supervalu Loughrea. Despite his physical complaints, he still clocks up 30 miles every second week and generally runs four days a week.
Jarlath receives injections to his left hip to keep the pain at bay while running on the road.
To give his joints a break, during the winter he runs cross country and often does a five-mile trek around Kylebrack Wood.
He is planning on running his 150th marathon in Cork on June 4, where a group of 20 made up of work colleagues, friends and running mates from Loughrea Athletics Club will join him.
Some are doing the 10k, others are doing the half marathon, but all will be there on the finishing line to cheer him on in the phenomenal achievement.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
From the Galway City Tribune – An impassioned plea for a ‘masterplan’ that would guide Galway City into the future has been made in the Dáil. Galway West TD Catherine Connolly stated this week that there needed to be an all-inclusive approach with “vision and leadership” in order to build a sustainable city.
Deputy Connolly spoke at length at the crisis surrounding traffic and housing in Galway city and said that not all of the blame could be laid at the door of the local authority.
She said that her preference would be the provision of light rail as the main form of public transport, but that this would have to be driven by the government.
“I sat on the local council for 17 years and despaired at all of the solutions going down one road, metaphorically and literally. In 2005 we put Park & Ride into the development plan, but that has not been rolled out. A 2016 transport strategy was outdated at the time and still has not been updated.
“Due to the housing crisis in the city, a task force was set up in 2019. Not a single report or analysis has been published on the cause of the crisis,” added Deputy Connolly.
She then referred to a report from the Land Development Agency (LDA) that identified lands suitable for the provision of housing. But she said that two-thirds of these had significant problems and a large portion was in Merlin Park University Hospital which, she said, would never have housing built on it.
In response, Minister Simon Harris spoke of the continuing job investment in the city and also in higher education, which is his portfolio.
But turning his attention to traffic congestion, he accepted that there were “real issues” when it came to transport, mobility and accessibility around Galway.
“We share the view that we need a Park & Ride facility and I understand there are also Bus Connects plans.
“I also suggest that the City Council reflect on her comments. I am proud to be in a Government that is providing unparalleled levels of investment to local authorities and unparalleled opportunities for local authorities to draw down,” he said.
Then Minister Harris referred to the controversial Galway City Outer Ring Road which he said was “struck down by An Bord Pleanála”, despite a lot of energy having been put into that project.
However, Deputy Connolly picked up on this and pointed out that An Bord Pleanála did not say ‘No’ to the ring road.
“The High Court said ‘No’ to the ring road because An Bord Pleanála acknowledged it failed utterly to consider climate change and our climate change obligations.
“That tells us something about An Bord Pleanála and the management that submitted such a plan.”
In the end, Minister Harris agreed that there needed to be a masterplan for Galway City.
“I suggest it is for the local authority to come up with a vision and then work with the Government to try to fund and implement that.”
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
