David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I want to raise a separate issue concerning the follow-up correspondence from Maynooth. It is to do with what it calls occasional staff and staff on contracts. The volume of people on contracts at the university is high. The university stated in its cover note that it does not engage persons on zero-hour contracts. That is true. However, there are if-and-when contracts or what it calls occasional staff contracts. The university stated it believes the engagement of staff on an occasional basis is necessary, appropriate, fair and in compliance with relevant legislation. In some cases, it may well be.

The difficulty is that we are seeing this more and more with public bodies which are employing people on if-and-when contracts. On some occasions, it is the right thing to do; other times, it is not. Watching this across all organisations, my fear is that some public bodies are hiding behind this position. If-and-when or low-hour contracts may suit some people but they do not suit everybody. If it does not suit somebody, then it is the only contract offered. There is an issue in relation to their rights and entitlements, whether it is sick pay, holiday pay and other entitlements. We have seen it with other public bodies and I believe we need to keep an eye on it.

I noted in Maynooth that 1,394 staff were on occasional staff contracts. It seems to be a bit high. I know there is a logic to it and I can see how it would suit a university. It is something that I will keep an eye on. When is the Department of Education and Skills due back before the committee?