Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Killeen, and his colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Michael Ahern, who introduced Second Stage two days ago in his absence.

The Bill is welcome in that it gives an opportunity to debate the important issues encompassed by it. Its aim, as the Minister of State said in his opening statement, is to transpose into Irish law an EU directive of the year 2002. It is both long overdue and disappointing in its scope and content. Ireland models itself on an economy built on partnership. That is the image we present across the world to the effect that there is co-operation within the economy between its pillars — workers, employers, the agricultural sector and the social pillar — which work together in an environment of mutual support and respect to everybody's gain. That is the model we have presented, certainly to the new developing countries and the new EU member states, as the recipe for economic progress. It is a model that is now under severe attack.

The debates in this House over several weeks regarding Irish Ferries indicate the most pointed and savage underscoring of the attack on the whole concept of social partnership. A maverick company such as Irish Ferries is seen by others as a trojan horse to undermine social partnership and, to borrow the phrase of the Taoiseach's, to engage in a race to the bottom. A view was expressed that because this maverick behaviour was confined to the maritime sector, it was difficult to deal with because it was happening offshore, so to speak, and outside the scope and remit of Irish domestic law. This refers to a labour law regime that has been built up, particularly since our membership of the European Economic Community in the 1970s. Its most important pillars were put in place by a dynamic Minister for Labour, Deputy Michael O'Leary, during the 1970s who bedded down many of the fundamental rights that have been expanded in the following decades. That corpus of labour law is now under attack and not alone in the maritime sector.

Incidentally, I reject any notion that we cannot deal with the maritime sector. The Labour Party has this week produced a Bill requiring those companies who wish to reflag vessels to do so in jurisdictions with which they have real connections and not simply pick a country just to avail of a labour law or funding regime that is entirely inappropriate and undermines the employment regime that has been built up in Ireland over decades. There are mechanisms to deal with such situations and I hope that the rhetoric we have heard from Government, not least from the Taoiseach, will transpose itself into firm action. If this maverick company is allowed to get away with it, we will not have a maritime sector with an Irish employee within a few months. There certainly will be knock-on consequences for the rest of the economy as well.

How will it knock on to the rest of the economy? It has already been brought to my attention that EU citizens have every right and entitlement to work in Ireland but many are being employed on a minimum wage and are willing to work overtime at a flat rate. That is causing major difficulties and much resentment within a labour force that has agreed negotiated wage rates for particular jobs and an expectation that work carried out after the standard 39-hour week will be remunerated at an enhanced level of pay.

If these issues are not dealt with upfront and clearly, we are going to attract incipient racism. The murmurs exist already to the effect that it is not an issue of employers exploiting employees but rather non-nationals somehow undermining wage rates and the terms and conditions of employment of Irish workers. It is a serious juncture and the Minister of State with responsibility for labour affairs, has a critical role to play in addressing this issue directly, robustly and immediately.

This is not the appropriate time to deal with this matter as I only have half an hour to speak specifically on this piece of legislation, but I hope there will be a further and fuller debate on these matters. The type of society we have in this country will be defined very shortly by this if we do not deal with these issues robustly and clearly to preserve in legislation the terms and conditions that workers have won over the years. It should be ensured that those who work in the economy from other EU member states and beyond where work permits have been allocated do so in line with the terms, conditions and rates negotiated and receive the premium payments agreed with the trade unions.

It is of great concern that the terms of the Employment Permits Bill, which we will deal with separately in due course, unfortunately mentions only a requirement to pay the minimum wage. There is almost an indication that non-nationals working in this economy should be paid the minimum rate only. It is an issue that we must come to grips with and that the Government, if it really believes in the ideal of social partnership and wants to vindicate and defend the rights of workers and the gains made by the trade union movement over the years, will have to act upon with some alacrity. I fear, however, the rhetoric we have heard from the Taoiseach and others is merely that and that a liberalising Progressive Democrats mentality lies at the heart of the Government.

This directive provides a unique opportunity to bed down real partnership. The basic principle of the legislation is to establish a general framework setting out minimum requirements for the right to information and, equally importantly, the right to consultation of employees. Ireland has an unenviable record of being the last of the 25 member states of the Union to legislate for this directive. This comes as no surprise to me from a Government that sees itself as being closer to Boston than Berlin. At least significant sections of the Government do, although I am not sure of the position of the Minister of State present in this regard.

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