John Perry (Sligo-North Leitrim, Fine Gael)

I thank all the Deputies who have contributed to this debate. The Government has stated it will not be opposing Second Stage of this Bill. Speakers on the Government side of the House have expressed their appreciation for the intention behind Deputy O'Dea's Bill, since its aim is to protect vulnerable workers. However, as the Taoiseach and the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, have both stated in the House, the legal advice available to the Government is crystal clear. The Bill as drafted is not sufficiently robust to deal with the problem Deputy O'Dea seeks to solve. While the intentions are good, unfortunately, the Bill is not adequate.

The measure proposed by Deputy O'Dea is premature. The judgement delivered by Mr. Justice Feeney on 7 July 2011 has so far only been made available in draft form. It has not been finalised. The declaration to which the High Court has said the plaintiffs are entitled has also to be finalised. The Bill is, moreover, insufficient as it does not address the potentially far-reaching consequences of the recent High Court judgement, nor is it likely to prove a bulwark against further legal challenges. We need legislation in this area that will withstand challenge. There is no point in proceeding with half-measures that will only be found to be faulty before long. The Industrial Relations (Amendment) Bill 2011 is not adequate to meet the need arising from the recent High Court judgment as it does not contain a sufficiently comprehensive range of reform proposals and cannot guarantee that the limited additional safeguards it seeks to put in place would survive legal challenge. Deputy O'Dea's Bill relies on a "cut and paste" approach by importing the main provisions of the now lapsed Industrial Relations (Amendment) Bill 2009, without taking into account the series of specific changes to the legislative framework put forward in the recommendations of the independent review report. It also fails to respond effectively to the more difficult issues raised in the High Court judgment of Mr. Justice Feeney, delivered on 7 July 2011.

Concerns were raised yesterday and again this evening by a number of Deputies regarding the potential for exploitation of vulnerable workers by unscrupulous employers. While the vast majority of workers behave responsibly, there will undoubtedly be a small minority who may seek to exploit the High Court decision.

Workers covered by an employment regulation order that fixed minimum rates of pay and conditions of employment will continue to be protected by their individual contracts of employment, whether written or verbal, which in many cases already incorporate the minimum rates of pay and conditions of employment set by whatever ERO may have covered their employment. Any question of a change to an employee's contractual entitlement is essentially a matter to be agreed between each employee and their employer where this is not already a matter dealt with through collective agreements.

Where an employee is concerned about a possible breach of their existing contract of employment they can make a complaint under employment law by direct access to the employment rights bodies or in the law courts. Any workers seeking information about how they can bring complaints about variations in pay or deductions made without their agreement should contact NERA.

The fact that the process of making EROs has been found by the High Court to be unconstitutional, together with the identified lack of adequate Oireachtas scrutiny of this process, only underscores some of the main features of the recommendations for reform that were put forward by the independent review report on these statutory wage setting mechanisms.

Deputies on different sides of this House have recalled the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Bill 2009, which was introduced by the last Government, but allowed to lapse after being left on the Order Paper for 12 months. That Bill had sought to address the vulnerability of both the JLC and REA systems. What is now required is a comprehensive reform measure that can address all of the recommendations for reform that were put forward by the independent review report on these statutory wage setting mechanisms as well as the implications of the recent High Court judgment.

The comprehensive reform proposals that have already been the subject of discussions with stakeholders and at Government will go some way in addressing the weaknesses identified by the court, and would therefore restore protection for workers in the relevant sectors.

Now the priority is to proceed with the preparation of comprehensive reform proposals since the implications of the High Court judgment for our wage setting mechanisms are not confined to the joint labour committee system.

The wide-ranging recommendations of the independent review report underscored the need to bring forward a substantive reform measure. The High Court ruling has posed an even greater challenge. Premature half-measures that tackle only some of these serious issues will not suffice to meet that challenge.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions has said it considers that the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Bill 2009 can serve as a foundation for the necessary further work. ICTU considers, however, that the best course of action would now be to bring forward substantive legislation to deal with the problem. This means comprehending the recommendations of the independent review report by Kevin Duffy and Dr. Frank Walsh in the form of substantive legislation. Taking into account the High Court judgment, the Government is determined to proceed with urgency to a substantial reform of the current JLC/REA regulatory system in order to protect existing jobs in these vulnerable sectors of the economy and to increase the likelihood of employment in these sectors being increased. The Government's intention is that legislation will be introduced to the Dáil very early in the next term with prioritised enactment thereafter.

On the question Deputy Calleary raised, I will forward him that detail.

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