The Irish Congress of Trade Unions has today (11 November) expressed its deep disappointment at the Government’s refusal to formally recognise Covid-19 as an occupational disease.
The decision was communicated in a letter from Taoiseach Micheál Martin to ICTU General Secretary Owen Reidy.
Ireland remains among a small number of EU Member States that have not formally recognised Covid-19 as an occupational disease or injury, contrary to recommendations from both the European Commission and the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
A 2024 Eurostat survey shows that 24 EU Member States have already recognised Covid‑19 as an occupational disease or workplace accident.
Ireland has not yet done so, despite acknowledging the link between workplace exposure and the virus, thereby undermining both worker protection and access to appropriate compensation and support
Formal recognition in Ireland would have helped to ensure that workers who were exposed to increased risk in the course of their duties, many of whom continue to experience the effects of long Covid, have clear and appropriate access to supports
Commenting, President of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, Phil Ní Sheaghdha said:
“The Government’s position is a profound disservice to the frontline workers who risked their health during the pandemic and are now suffering from the debilitating effects of long Covid.
“The failure to formally classify Covid-19 as an occupational disease is effectively a failure to continue the necessary and long-term sick payment needed by so many workers. Frontline staff, in particular, were exposed to increased risk serving the public, and they deserve clear, appropriate, and robust access to supports.
"Ireland remains an outlier, one of the few EU Member States yet to formally recognise Covid-19 as an occupational disease, flying in the face of recommendations from both the European Commission and the International Labour Organization (ILO).
“Furthermore, the indefinite deferral of ratifying ILO Convention No. 192 leaves a dangerous gap in the protection framework for workers currently exposed to biological risks. This failure to act acknowledges neither the significant personal sacrifice of frontline workers nor the clear lesson of the pandemic: that the State must commit to protecting those who protect others."
“We urge the Government to reconsider this position."
ENDS
