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

As I have a later question that will not be reached, I will try to connect it to this question on the issue of retaining jobs as well as creating them. Given they handed him a letter, the Minister will be familiar with the Connolly Shoes workers in Dun Laoghaire who were sacked, having been 17 months on strike, and who have now been found by the Employment Appeals Tribunal to have been unfairly dismissed. One of the longest serving employees, Mr. John Mulpeter, after 38 years service has been sacked unfairly and will walk away with only €1,600 because the legislation allows employers to do this to people - it allows them to essentially concoct excuses to sack workers so they do not have to pay them off properly in terms of redundancy and pensions. Legislation needs to be urgently brought in to prevent unscrupulous employers from sacking workers to avoid paying them moneys they are owed and their proper entitlements.

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