Ms Maeve McElwee:

When one looks at a broad span of sectors where the REA is in place, the consumer is taken care of from the point of view that this is a negotiated and agreed rate between employers and their employees. That will obviously be of benefit to business. It is an agreed and registered piece. Generally, it has a payback to the industry and to the consumer as well.

We have some concerns in regard to REOs because there would be no requirement for an agreement. There is no clear guidance as to what constitutes a sector or what constitutes the area over which the Labour Court may define that an REO applies. As happens in already existing JLCs, such as the retail grocery JLC, one has everybody, from the major players right down to the very smallest players. It does have an impact on the consumer. It is part and parcel of our concern in terms of a wage-setting mechanism that is not based on an agreement between the parties, and that potentially has an impact on the consumer.