Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to speak on this important debate on the WTO negotiations. I wish to focus on the area of labour, workers' rights and the crime of poverty internationally. I do not say this lightly. Unemployment, low wages and poverty should no longer be tolerated in a world full of surplus resources and finances. The Irish Ferries dispute has involved in recent days an attempt to introduce slave labour. As an Independent Deputy, I stand by workers and their rights both at home and abroad.

When talking about work, I like to refer to "decent" work. Economic growth alone does not eradicate poverty. Trickle down theories have been proved wrong in this regard. In many developing countries, wealth from new and stronger growth is continuously concentrated among elites. Decent employment is the key mechanism by which wealth is redistributed. Men and women want a global system that enables people to work themselves out of poverty in freedom and dignity. The world desperately needs a rapid expansion in employment growth. According to official estimates, 186 million people are out of work. However, this figure does not include people who fall outside the official statistics framework. For example, the Australian bureau of statistics deems that a person who works for one hour per week is employed.

Is every job a good job? Simply having a job does not guarantee a living income. In addition to unemployment, many of the world's workers are underemployed, sometimes working in a number of jobs and on a regular or casual basis with no job security. In Asia alone, 1 billion people work to earn less than $2 per day. They are called the working poor because despite having a job, they do not have enough to live on. Women comprise 60% of the world's working poor. They are often the most underemployed and casualised members of the workforce.

As well as not earning enough to live on, workers often must work in unsafe conditions, are discriminated against and, in worst case scenarios, engaged in slavery or child labour. More than 2 million workers die every year of work related diseases and accidents. In China, there were 500,000 work related deaths in 2001. At least 12.3 million people worldwide are trapped in forced labour, 2.4 million of those through human trafficking. There are 250 million child labourers; this figure only includes children who are paid for their work as opposed to working alongside their parents and families as is often the case in the agriculture industry. It is workers in developing countries who bear the brunt of these cruel work practices as their poverty gives them little or no choice. Within this, women are often the most underemployed and exploited.

I believe in trade justice. Everybody should have the right to feed their families, earn a decent living and protect their environment. However, more than 1 billion people live on less than $1 per day, most of them farmers and farm workers. No matter how hard they work, they earn less every year. Unfair trade rules are a major reason. Current world trade rules rob people in poorer countries of the opportunity to trade their way out of poverty.

I conclude with the words of Nelson Mandela: "Trade justice for the developing world and for this generation is a truly significant way for the developed countries to show their commitment to bring about an end to global poverty". I stand by the message of Mr. Mandela and urge world leaders and the international community to stand by the poor of the world.

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