Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein)

Over the years workers have gained certain hard-won employment rights but, unfortunately, conservative governments have consistently chipped away at these rights. We must uphold our commitment to the core republican objectives set out in the 1919 Democratic Programme, which asserts the right of every person in Ireland to an adequate share of the produce of the nation's labour.

Within employment relationships, in the absence of regulation, the balance of power will always favour the employer. Employers exploit workers quite simply because they can. Employers can replace well-paid workers with lower-paid workers because the State allows them to operate within a framework that permits them to do so. While certain benevolent employers will provide progressive conditions of employment, experience demonstrates that the majority will not unless compelled to do so. We call upon the Government to replace the current model of weak labour regulation and to enforce stringent conditions.

The JLCs are merely one aspect of the over-arching reforms that are needed. These independent bodies, through which employers and employees can negotiate and agree wages and conditions in a number of sectors of the labour market are essential for workers who now live in a society in which IBEC pulled the Government strings for years. People are saddled with distressed mortgages and loans that they will never be able to repay in full. Massive levels of debt and high mortgages mean that people, unfortunately usually the lowest paid workers, cannot afford to withdraw their labour.

The purpose of the employment regulation orders, EROs, and the JLCs is to provide legal protection for groups of workers who are traditionally non-unionised, low paid and often part-time, many of them women or migrants or the most vulnerable workers. Currently, there are 18 EROs in force, covering a range of service and hospitality sectors. There are 68 registered employment agreements, REAs, currently in operation, involving a range of agricultural, services and skilled trades occupations and enterprises. Both EROs and REAs are legally binding once made by or registered with the Labour Court and cover basic wage levels and conditions such as overtime, unsocial time and sick pay entitlements for up to 550,000 people. It is no wonder employers want to get rid of them.

Despite the legally binding nature of the JLC-REA agreements, rates of compliance are very low. The 2009 annual report of the National Employment Rights Authority, NERA, reported that in three of the largest areas covered by the agreements, 70% of employers were in breach of their statutory obligations. IBEC, of course, called for them to be abolished, saying they were negatively impacting on competitiveness and holding back job growth, despite that huge numbers of employers were not paying them anyway. No evidence has been produced by IBEC or others to prove a link between the JLC-REA agreements and job losses or job growth. Where companies have legitimate difficulties meeting existing JLC-REA agreements, the existing framework can be used to resolve the problems to maintain employment levels through use of an inability to pay clause.

The Government cannot make up its mind on the issue. Fine Gael wants to drive wages down across the board and the Labour Party wants to focus on premium rates. The European Commission and IMF want to get rid of the JLCs and REAs and to lower wage costs in general. It is a mystery how they think people can sustain further cuts. Meanwhile, workers can be exploited as a result of a High Court decision which found that the JLCs were unconstitutional.

Sinn Féin supports the retention of the JLC system and will vehemently oppose any attempt to abolish it. We do not believe that the wage rates or conditions of the lowest paid workers in this State should be reduced. It is a scandal that it would even be contemplated. It is clear that any reduction of the basic or premium wage rates will increase levels of poverty as well as further dampen consumer spending and put private sector jobs at risk. All of these things have knock-on effects. We do not support the introduction of an inability to pay clause. There must be a progressive reform of the system.

Workers' contribution to society must be acknowledged through fair working conditions and a return on their labour. Like James Connolly, we demand for workers more than their mere survival. Workers have the equal right to flourish and to control their destinies. None must ever again be ground down and treated as a mere cog for the profit of the few. Beneath the false exterior of the wealth of the Celtic tiger economy in the past 13 or 14 years and generally rising incomes, a new underclass of exploited workers emerged in Ireland, made up of low-paid workers. It is these same workers who are being penalised by employers and a Government that does not wish to protect the JLC system.

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