Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)

The joint labour committees and the registered employment agreements are the main mechanism through which the lowest paid workers are protected. This affects 400,000 of the lowest paid workers in the State, who have already been hammered by child benefit cuts and the universal social charge. They are really struggling. Can the Minister give reassurance to those workers, who are deeply anxious about what the review means in terms of further attacks on their wages and conditions? Does the Minister have the review, when will it be published and will there be a chance to debate it in the Chamber before the summer or as soon as possible so we can see what is proposed, the Minister's response and so the workers affected can have their say on it? Can the Minister guarantee these workers they have no reason to fear the review of wages and conditions for the lowest paid being considered will result in an attack on the structures that allow some regulation in these sectors? In many cases, these are casual or part-time workers in difficult employment circumstances and are contract cleaners, retail workers and people in the catering industry. The anxiety is justified given that it is part of the conditions of the IMF-EU deal to examine these agreements. Everything else from that deal has meant cuts, austerity and attacks on existing wages and conditions. Can the Minister guarantee this will not result in attacks on wages and conditions of the lowest paid workers in the State?

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