Ms Patricia King:

I am glad the Deputy drew the analogy with the sheep because I was born and reared in Wicklow and, as a young girl, I used to have to go and count the sheep too. I counted them on the Sugar Loaf but they got hidden behind rocks, so I got used to not seeing everything the first time I looked.

I will focus my comments on the construction industry. First, in the downturn, five out of eight workers in the construction industry lost their jobs.

Second, there was considerable change in the employment methodology. I do not intend to name any of the bigger construction employer groups. A number of them fell into liquidation due to the economic collapse. At least six or seven of the bigger construction employers use indirect employment, for example by using agencies. Most of the agencies are not offering employment which comes anywhere near the former registered employment levels. As I explained before, the only law they have to comply with is the minimum wage. Although they are in a minority, there are still employees who did not lose their jobs but have maintained their employment and whose terms and conditions did not improve, because construction workers have taken a 7% pay cut. Turnover in the industry is very high. Most of the new job offers, whether short term or long term, offer wages that are nowhere near previous levels, and there are extremes. There are employers who offer extremely low wages, between €10 and €12 per hour. A general operative in the registered agreement before this fell was probably earning approximately €15.40 per hour while workers such as crane operators and banksmen earned approximately €22 per hour. Many people have lost their earning potential and have a major interest in the legislation passing.

Other issues are overtime and how it is paid for and travel time. There is a long tradition regarding rates for travel time, much of which fell off the cart. This is not anecdotal, but based on strong feedback from our membership. We are the main union for the general operatives. Other categories such as carpenters and electricians are in the craft unions, although we have some craft workers, such as painters. Feedback from our members is that everybody should maintain his or her contract, even in catering and hospitality. When the employment regulation orders, EROs, fell, before we got them back, there was an increase in employment but a 24% drop in full-time employment and a 33% increase in part-time employment. There has been considerable slippage in the bigger sectors, such as construction, in terms of wages, pay rates and terms and conditions. This sort of regulation order would be extraordinarily positive in getting back to where people were.