John Lyons (Dublin North West, Labour)

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Sean Sherlock, for attending. I wish to bring to his attention the issue of the takeover of The Fáilte Bar in Dublin Airport earlier this year and the impact on the ten former members of staff. I am very conscious that this is an ongoing issue and is somewhat sensitive. There are already proceedings under way with the Labour Relations Commission. Therefore, I wish to focus on the role of the Dublin Airport Authority in this matter. I am mainly concerned for the workers, many of whom I have met and live in my constituency. There is also a bigger issue, namely, the Dublin Airport Authority's involvement in contracts in the airport.

The Minister of State may be aware that the operation of the bar was taken over earlier this year by a company called SSP and that it subsequently closed. The bar then reopened under a new name, The Angel's Share, with expanded food service. Essentially, the former staff were told to apply for new positions in the new bar. Those who successfully completed an assessment were to be given new job titles, with significantly changed terms and conditions. Not all were offered new jobs and there are currently redundancy proceedings under way. Three workers out of the ten are on a month's trial on their old pay rates. However, it is not yet clear what rates they will be offered when the trial period ends later this month. The pay per hour for the new positions in the bar is €9.60, whereas some of the bar staff in the old bar, The Fáilte Bar, were earning €17 and over per hour. This is a significant change in the pay rate offered for the same job.

I fear that what happened to the workers in the airport, where a large number of service sector staff work, could happen elsewhere if a similar changeover took place. I appreciate that passenger numbers have declined and that businesses are adjusting to this, but I do not believe a change of operator and new job titles should essentially mean these kinds of changes to pay rates.

There is a possibility that what happened to the ten workers will happen to other airport workers if the responsibility for the operation of other bars or services is transferred. This is an issue the Dublin Airport Authority needs to consider seriously. It is not enough for the authority simply to handle tenders and not have an interest in the rights of workers in the airport. I ask the Minister of State to raise this with the Dublin Airport Authority and the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, in particular. Workers in the service sector already have precarious job conditions and many must work unsociable hours, as we know. At the very least, the workers deserve respect, but they also deserve the support of the Dublin Airport Authority when circumstances such as those in question arise.

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