Irish Congress of Trade Unions Workplace Day of Actions in solidarity with the people of Palestine
When: Thursday, November 26th, 2026
Materials can be downloaded below:
You can find ICTU's Procurement Policy here.
Palestinian Trade Union global call for worker action.
Resource document for Day of Action.
If you are holding an event, please register your event with us at [email protected] in advance.
Context
On Thursday, November 26th, trade unions on the island of Ireland will answer the call of Palestinian trade unionists by taking action in our workplaces.
Thousands of trade unionists in Ireland have joined and will continue to join national and local protests throughout the island and have been leading an array of solidarity actions.
In July, the Congress BDC passed a wide-ranging composite motion (link) urging leadership in the Palestine solidarity campaign, including coordinated workplace and community action aimed at ending Irish, UK and EU complicity in the genocide in Gaza, and calling on affiliates, through their respective collective bargaining mechanisms to secure ethical procurement and to challenge public procurement contracts with companies complicit in genocide, illegal occupation and other breaches of international law, including through the supply chain.
Workers on this island should not be placed in “unconscionable situations” of facilitating trade with Israel or handling Israeli goods. While Ireland has made diplomatic efforts within the EU - most recently, once again, the European Council has failed to suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement. In yet another disappointing development, the EU has failed to use its leverage to respond to the continued escalation and the bombing campaigns carried out by Israel across several countries in the Middle East. Despite calls from several Member States, including Spain, Belgium, Ireland and Slovenia, to suspend the agreement, strong opposition from Germany and Italy has once again led to a deadlock.
The ongoing failure to implement real sanctions means some trade union members fear being complicit in Israel’s violence. We would not be surprised if some of these develop into flashpoints of conscientious objection by some workers. As a movement, we are clear: we will not be found wanting in protecting our members where an employer seeks to discipline or dismiss a worker in such circumstances.
Palestinian workers, remaining steadfast in pursuing their struggle for freedom and justice, have called on workers around the world to stand in solidarity with them by campaigning to end the complicity of their governments, corporations and institutions in Israel’s system of oppression.
On 26th November, join in the workplace day of action to call for an end to government and corporate complicity in Israel’s atrocities, and mobilise for greater workplace actions in solidarity with the people and workers of Palestine.
Discuss with your colleagues in your branch about what kind of action is best suited to your workplace and its circumstances. Below are a number of suggestions but you may have your own ideas that suit your workplace too.
What you can do
Stand in your workplaces at 1pm in a joint moment of solidarity before proceeding for a photo.
Alternatively, take a photo outside your workplace at lunchtime with banners and signs and sharing personal statements of solidarity. These could be combined into a collage or video montage for social media. We would ask Affiliates to share photos on their social media channels. These could be joint union action in workplaces with more than one union present.
- Lunch-and-Learn Sessions: Organise workplace discussions or virtual lunch-and-learn sessions about Palestine and how we can make our support for BDS more effective / increase the number of trade union members attending national and local protests. Trade Union Friends of Palestine have developed a fantastic set of BDS educational materials. Why not explore them during a session and seek to organise a training of trainers session? Materials available here.
Procurement: Does your employer have a procurement policy? Why not organise for ethical procurement in your workplace. An ethical procurement operation guide and the EPP Campaigns guide from ELSC. both can be found on the European Legal Support Center (ELSC) website here: https://elsc.support/know-your-rights/
An ethical investment policy from the BNC is also available here which would help regarding pensions: Use these resources to write to your employer seeking information in relation to their policy asking if it contains anything in relation to respect for human rights by companies, as well as their obligation under widely accepted business and human rights norms – as laid down in the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises – to promote respect for human rights by companies with which they do business.
- Become an apartheid free zone - https://apartheidfree.ie/become-an-apartheid-free-zone/#contact
