Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Amendment No. 13 provides for a prohibition or restriction on charges or deductions from the national minimum hourly rate of pay. The Payment of Wages Act already provides a redress mechanism for unlawful deductions from wages.

Section 5(1) of the Payment of Wages Act allows an employer to make deductions required or authorised by law, such as PRSI, that are required or authorised by a term of the employee's contract, or any deduction agreed to in writing and advanced by the employee such as trade union subscriptions or VHI or health care premia.

Section 5(2) of the Act places significant restrictions on employers in terms of deductions, and the nature of deductions, that can be removed from the pay packets of employees. Accordingly, I cannot accept amendment No. 13.