Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

The Minister has referred to the WRC audit on the particular issue of employment contracts and the role of the designated activity company versus the producer company. The concluding section of that audit which was, I think, section 7, states "The WRC would urge that clarity in relation to this matter be provided". In other words, it acknowledged that there is not clarity around it. That is a nice way of responding to the fact that they were heavily lobbied by the producer companies to essentially not upset the apple cart, and to try to make an exceptional case for the film industry around its episodic nature and the role of the DACs. It is that lack of absolute clarity about the relationship between the DAC that is set up for the specific film and the producer company that applies to the Minister and the Government for section 481 relief. It is in that grey area that the producer company can then walk into the Labour Court or the WRC, even after this audit is produced, and say that it is not the employer. This matter cannot be resolved by a collective agreement because it needs to be clarified by the Government which gives out the relief and that is really the nub of the problem. I do not see how the Government does not understand this or frankly, even see how the WRC audit did not understand it.

The declaration and undertaking the Minister put in place, on which I commend him, is black and white. It states:

In providing those opportunities the companies hereby undertake that in the event that the application for certification of the film is successful, the companies shall as a condition of certification:

[ ... ]

2. be responsible for compliance with all statutory requirements of an employer and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing shall be solely responsible in law for the employment, remuneration, taxes, immigration and work permits of all personnel ...

That is in the declaration they are required to sign, yet the Workplace Relations Commission audit states there is some sort of lack of clarity around this. The declaration states it is the responsibility of the producer company as well as the DAC. However, the producer company that applies to the Department for the relief and sets up the DAC then goes into the Labour Court or the WRC and says it is not the employer, the DAC is the employer and the producer company has no responsibility. In that context, it can then evade its specific responsibilities to apply the fixed-term workers legislation.

I will read from clause 4 of the European Council directive from 1999 concerning the principle of non-discrimination. This is Council Directive 1999/70/EC of 28 June 1999 which refers to period of service qualifications. It basically states the period of service qualifications for people on fixed-term contracts working in this kind of episodic employment should be no less favourable than those enjoyed by people in permanent employment. In other words, there is a recognition of service from project to project.

To put it in simple terms, if a person worked for 20, 30 or 40 years for one of these producer companies which applies for tax relief - all this film production is funded largely by public money through section 481 - but did so through a myriad of different DACs set up by the company, that person should, as the EU directive sets out, have accumulated a period of service qualifications. His or her service in the industry for that employer should be recognised. In reality, however, the producer companies refuse to recognise the service of such people. Somebody who has worked for 25 or 30 years is treated as if he or she has been employed for the first time and was never employed by that producer company before. The producer company, therefore, has no obligations whatever to that person as an employee who worked for it for decades in many cases. This practice is occurring and the Government must address it by stating it will no longer tolerate it.