HETAC Certificate
Congress / SIPTU Certificate in Business Studies (Trade Union Studies)
The Certificate in Business Studies (Trade Union Studies) is a modular programme with modules generally delivered in sequence rather than contemporaneously. This course has been developed in partnership with the National College of Ireland. The Programme has been developed for learners who are trade union members and activists. The primary target consists of members of affiliated unions of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU). All participants will be mature adults with experience of trade union issues. Individually and collectively, the candidates may have significant prior learning.
The modules of the course will be delivered on a consecutive basis of one class per week for ten weeks commencing in SIPTU College in September 2010 with module Safety, Health and Welfare at Work. The modules will be presented within six semesters and are offered as an evening course from 6 pm to 9 pm. The usual fee for each module is €150.00 ; please contact your union to enquire if a subsidy for this course is available. This ICTU / SIPTU course is accredited for lifelong learning with a value of sixty (60) HETAC credits. Successful completion of the course earns the award of a Certificate in Business Studies (Trade Union Studies) and will be eligible to progress to the Honours Bachelor Degree in Industrial Relations & Human Resource Management in the National College of Ireland (NCI), to the Diploma in Business Studies and to the Honours Bachelor in Business Studies in University College Dublin (UCD) and to a range of other cognate degrees at levels 7 and 8.
Outline of Subjects
Collective Bargaining & The Theory and Practice of Negotiation
The aim of this module is to examine how organisations manage the relationship with employees; the evolution of human resource management and the principal theories and models of negotiations; to familiarise the learners with conventions, stages and procedures in collective bargaining and to provide learners with the opportunity to examine industrial relations in practice.
Introduction to Irish Employment Law
The aim of this module is to examine the role of the law in civil society, how law in Ireland is made; the differences between common law and statute law; between a 'contract of service' and a 'contract for service' and to examine a specific range of statutory employment conditions and familiarise the learners with the relevant statutes and regulations.
Equality and Diversity
The aim of this module is to examine the history and growth of Equality Legislation and the specific range of statutory employment conditions and familiarise the learners with relevant statutes and regulations, the legal concepts of 'discrimination' and 'equality' and the associated statutory provisions, and the procedures for redress under equality legislation, and to examine strategies and policies for preventing and eliminating discrimination and to identify barriers to the achievement of equality in the workplace.
Safety, Health and Welfare at Work
The aim of this module is to provide the learners with an understanding of the role of trade unions and the law in the provision of safe and healthy workplace environments and to familiarise them with the duties, roles and responsibilities of employers and employees in this regard. September ‐ December 2010
Human Resource Management
The aim of this module is to build on material in Collective Bargaining and Theory and Practice of Negotiations in examining the theory of human resource management and to familiarise the learners with current practice in this area including issues relation to strategies. January-March 2011
Introduction to Economics
The aim of this module is to introduce the learner to the market system and its strengths and limitations; to provide an understanding of the core issues in the development and interpretation of economic models and of the Irish economy in the global context.
HETAC Accreditation
One subject is taught during each module. Each module carries 10 credits and is assessed separately to facilitate participants who wish to take the course in modular format over a longer period. Participants who complete the six modules (six subjects) and who have gained 60 credits, may apply to HETAC for the award of the Certificate of Business Studies (Trade Union Studies). Participants wishing to obtain credits are required, by way of assessment, to complete an assignment (essay or project) on two subjects and sit examinations in four subjects. The assignments and examinations carry 70% of the marks and the remaining 30% are achieved through continuous assessment.
Learning Methods
Lectures, general and group discussions, case studies, role plays, projects and exercises facilitate teaching and learning on the course. These are supported by multitimedia technologies.