Mr. John O'Connell:

It is an extremely urgent issue for workers to be able to have those conversations in the context of the workplace changing so fast. AI is one aspect of it in addition to, as Dr. O'Sullivan said, digitisation in the sector, the use of analytics and so forth.

There are two important developments in the area of collective bargaining for which we seek support from the Oireachtas. One is the minimum wage directive coming from Europe, which will set a target of 80% collective bargaining for each member state. That has to be embraced and not just adhered to. Recognising that collective bargaining leads to a stable and fairer society needs to be embraced. The second piece is good-faith bargaining which, equally, has come through the Labour Employer Economic Forum, LEEF, subcommittee involving the Government, employers and trade unions and is coming forward before the end of the year. Those are two very important developments that require the support of the full Oireachtas in getting us to the starting block for collective bargaining.

It is then about permeating it down on issues such as this, where workers and their representatives have access - not just physical but digital access - which is now a major issue for our members. We have had collective meetings of 1,200 people online and on screen regarding issues. Digital and physical access are two key elements of building a society where workers can highlight issues like these, without fear or favour, knowing they will be addressed by their employers in a responsible way. That would start to rebalance that power imbalance we talk about.