Northern Ireland

Regina Coeli hostel: Trade union hits out at legal action aimed at ending 'work-in'

Regina Coeli House in west Belfast where staff have been holding a 'work-in' for several weeks. File picture by Mal McCann
Regina Coeli House in west Belfast where staff have been holding a 'work-in' for several weeks. File picture by Mal McCann Regina Coeli House in west Belfast where staff have been holding a 'work-in' for several weeks. File picture by Mal McCann

A TRADE union has hit out at legal action against people occupying Belfast's only hostel for homeless women.

Workers at Regina Coeli hostel, a homeless woman and a volunteer have been served legal papers by the facility's management committee.

The action came weeks after staff decided to occupy the building in a 'work-in' protest to prevent it from being closed down.

Six staff were suspended but decided to stay on to help women needing addiction and mental health support.

The building is owned by the Legion of Mary - a Catholic voluntary organisation. The hostel is run by a management team staffed by volunteers.

Management announced in November that the building needed £500,000 of repairs and had to close.

Sharon Graham, general secretary of the Unite union, said she was shocked by the legal action.

"It demonstrates no awareness of the colossal public backing for the workers' campaign to save this facility for vulnerable women – support that comes from all corners of these islands," she said.

Irish regional secretary for Unite, Jackie Pollock, said the hostel's management committee should stand down.

"They need to move aside so that this facility can be made available and the Housing Executive and Department for Communities must intervene to invest and ensure the hostel remains open for those who need this vital provision," she said.

Martin Dummigan, vice chairman of the Regina Coeli management committee, said legal action had to be taken.

"We have to regain control of the building," he said.

"We hold legal responsibility for the contents of the building and the people in the building.

"We must get the building back to ensure that.

"We have major problems now in getting insurance for the building because we do not occupy it.

"We need to get the building back so we can hand it over to the Legion of Mary as vacant possession."

Mr Dummigan said the management committee "regrets deeply that at the start of all this Unite never contacted us".

"They launched straight into a protest," he said.