Ms Bríd McKeown:

I completely agree with the Deputy's comments on PPE. One of our questions is: if meat factories are deemed an essential place to remain open during Covid where was the risk assessment in preparation to make workers safe at the beginning of the outbreak?

With regards to the question on terms and conditions, 15% of the people we spoke to did not have contracts, 9% were not sure if they had contracts and a further 13% said their contracts did not reflect their terms and conditions. We are seeing that most among workers who have been in plants for ten or 15 years and who have contracts that reflect their conditions whenever they began to work, which they probably signed in their home country - Botswana or South Africa. They have been here for years without any change in their employment standards, the amount that they are valued, or any opportunity for progression or promotion. We have heard reports over the past year or two that workers are being given new contracts in English on the factory floor and being asked to sign them without them being translated or explained, and being subject to intimidation when there is resistance to signing contracts.

Regarding the barriers that we face, we have worked for the past year and a half to build up relationships with migrant workers in these sectors. They are poorly treated. There is a day-to-day lack of respect and value bestowed on them and a significant lack of trust among workers in any authorities or outsiders. It has taken us a lot of time to build up trustworthy relationships. Based on those, we have been able to establish relationships with groups of workers in different parts of the country and connect workers together. That has helped workers feel less isolated. One of the key barriers is language, access to resources and access to information about their employment rights. A suite of measures was promised whenever the meat sector work permits were introduced relating to the responsibilities of the employer to provide English for speakers of other languages, ESOL, and a series of information sessions or resources on employment rights.

To date, the MRCI does not know if that has been delivered. The main barriers are language, trust and the division of workers. I refer to setting workers against each other in the workplace. We have done much work to bring people together from different backgrounds to show solidarity with one another.