Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Irish families have been forced by the Minister and his predecessors in the previous Government to pay huge costs during their recession and austerity programme through increased bills, new taxes, charges and cuts to services. In addition, the Government has encouraged employers to become engaged in a race to the bottom, to devalue work, introduce lower wages and undermine the economy. As a consequence of the Government's actions, the country has become the second lowest paying in the European Union. That is some legacy for the Labour Party, whose members are not present. Given the background and political ideology of the Minister, Deputy Bruton, he is probably proud of that achievement because that is the agenda Fine Gael has always had.

In trying to hide the legacy, the Minister and his colleagues refer to the live register but the Government has tried to hide the real story behind it, namely, the huge emigration numbers, the creation of precarious part-time and temporary jobs, and the increased reliance on job activation schemes such as the disgraced JobBridge internship scheme. The live register figures have been massaged. Significant numbers have returned to education, which is to be welcomed, but that also affects the overall figures. All of that has led to a decline in employment and real wages and an increase in reliance on the State for social welfare transfers. In Dunnes Stores for instance, 80% of the workforce are on contracts of 15 hours or fewer. That means most if not all of those workers can rely on a State payment to help them, if they are lucky enough that their hours are spread over one or two days. If they are not so lucky their hours might be spread over four or five days, in which case they would not be allowed to access social welfare payments.

The social welfare payments to Dunnes Stores workers and other workers on this type of contract amount in a way to a substantial subsidy for those companies which use zero hour contracts. Millions of euro are spent on family income supplement or part-time dole payments because these companies will not create real jobs with real terms and conditions and real hours.

Let us not forget that the company many have spoken about tonight, Dunnes Stores, has made over €300 million profit in the past year. This State is in some ways helping to subsidise those profits without benefiting from the hours and contracts its workers demand and that the Government should demand of all employers. This is in line with the ethos of this Government which, like the last Government, cut the dole for young people and changed the number of days out of work before claiming the dole. It has also targeted lone parents, many of whom were able to avail of a subsidy through the one parent family payment and work a few hours. It has done this in every budget since the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Burton, has taken her role more seriously than any Fine Gael Minister ever would in targeting the poorest in our society, those who depend on social welfare. The Government has also made it more expensive to be a trade union member because it removed the tax relief on union subscriptions. The Minister present here, who is a member of Fine Gael, is probably proud of this.

Low pay is not just an issue for the under paid, it is one for society because the bigger the difference between the lowest and the highest paid in society the worse the societal well-being. Many studies, in particular those of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD, have shown that health, education, housing, workers’ rights and equality all suffer in those countries where inequality is highest. That is happening in Ireland today. In other words, low pay limits people’s ability to participate fully in society and seriously damages their and their children’s life choices. Providing properly paid, decent work is good for society, for workers and the economy. A strong and constructive relationship between trade unions and employers is an essential foundation for ensuring that work pays. The intimidation of shop stewards and shop floor representatives in Dunnes Stores is such that many of them do not want to be identified for fear of losing their job, having their hours cut or suffering some sort of retribution. Dunnes Stores cannot be allowed to become the William Martin Murphy of this century. All the companies exploiting workers in this State need to be tackled head on. I call on the Government to withdraw its counter motion and read our motion once again and adopt it.

It is disgraceful that unscrupulous employers are squeezing the last ounce of profit from workers as they have done in recent years and for many decades and centuries. That is why legislation for workers’ rights has been included in the legislative programme for many years. They need to be protected, not undermined as has happened in recent years. The continuous driving down of wages and conditions needs to stop.

Like many others in this House, across party lines, I visited various Dunnes Stores shops during the strike two weeks ago, in my own area, the Ashleaf Centre and the Crumlin Shopping Centre, and several within the city centre. I congratulate the workers who came out on strike despite the threats and intimidation from the company. These are ordinary decent workers who are only looking for a fair wage and a contract which would give them stability for a week’s work. The insecurity of their contracts leads to insecurity in their lives. They cannot access loans because they do not know from week to week what their income will be. The Minister should think about trying to plan his life and that of his children based on insecure hours or zero hours contracts. It cannot be done. That is one of the main problems that needs to be addressed. This affects not just the workers but their children and their futures.

I appeal to the Minister to use the legislation, introduce it and ensure that workers are protected, especially the low paid. He needs to set the standard according to the most vulnerable in society. Workers’ rights are rights for all. We are all workers in many ways. Our proposal is reasonable and is in line with every other proposal to come out of a recession created by an elite to build a fair society in the future. If the Minister cannot do that the Government should go to the people, hold a general election and put its proposals on zero hours, the low paid, JobBridge and every factor I have listed which has undermined pay and conditions, and society, to the public. I guarantee that it will hear loud and clear where the public stands on these matters.

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