Michael Conaghan (Dublin South Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to make some brief comments on this important issue. I will start by reiterating that we are all aware that the Government's principal task in 2011 was the daunting task of rescuing the economy and creating jobs. When we consider the scale of job losses, we readily understand the scale of the challenge presented. Some 330,000 jobs were lost in the economy between 2008 and 2012. Therefore, we were faced with a mighty challenge. We have faced multiple challenges. For example, we faced the challenge of how to restore confidence in the country, how to attract inward investment and how to create the conditions necessary for sustainable employment growth. There were some who hoped the Government would fail in these challenges, so keen was their thirst to make political progress. However, the Government did not fail. Against all of the odds, it made and continues to make progress. Last year alone, some 29,100 net new jobs were created.

I refer to employment as providing a context for employment rights. The increase in employment which I believe will continue brings with it a challenge. This relates to the rights and conditions of workers, on which the Labour Party has strong beliefs. It is a party that focuses not only on work but also on the rights of workers in the workplace. For that reason, I commend the objectives and aims of the Minister of State with responsibility for employment, Deputy Gerald Nash. He is a person of strong beliefs and has great experience in this field. He is a man of conviction and progressive thought. I mention his ideas and plans not just for the creation of work per sebut also for decency in the workplace and the rights and entitlements of workers. These ideas fall into three principal proposed plans of action. He has established the Low Pay Commission, one of the most important public policy innovations in decades. The commission will examine and make recommendations annually on the minimum wage, with a view to ensuring it is adjusted incrementally and regularly over time and that it keeps pace with the cost of living. The Minister of State's second focus will be on zero hour contracts. Precarious work and zero hour contracts are issues the Labour Party is tackling. The Minister of State has commissioned the Kemmy school at the University of Limerick to carry out a study of zero hour contracts, their prevalence and impact on employees. It is appropriate that this work is being carried out in a place named after the famed former Deputy Jim Kemmy, a man who was admired and well known here, who gave his life to fighting for workers' rights. He died prematurely, but the selection of the Kemmy school is an evocative choice by the Minister of State.

The third focus of the Minister of State is on collective bargaining. New legislation is being drafted on this key Labour Party commitment and will be brought before the House shortly. It will allow workers to improve their terms and conditions and ensure unions will have an effective legal system behind them. These provisions are necessary and effective antidotes to a philosophy that has been growing apace for years and has sought to erode the traditional rights of workers and trade unions. I wish the Minister of State well in this regard, particularly in his work in ensuring decency and dignity for workers in the workplace.

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