Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the many Deputies who took part in this debate. There has been a broad welcome for their contributions. The Bill builds on the Government's record of putting in place balanced measures, particularly to protect the most vulnerable in the workplace. The Government's first act was to restore the minimum wage.

We introduced legislation to cover temporary agency workers, a group of workers who were prone to abuse. We restored the joint labour committee structure after it was struck down by the courts. We are making two very important additional provisions in this legislation, the first of which deals with the issue of collective bargaining in a balanced way and the second of which restores the registered employment agreements. As many Deputies have pointed out, these agreements were struck down by the Supreme Court.

In our economic policy, we are seeking to achieve a virtuous circle in which successful enterprises can win new markets and apply innovation in a way that delivers more jobs and a higher standard of living for people. As we rebuild our economy, people have a right to share in the success of businesses. That is very important. We were exposed when registered employment agreements, which had been an important part of ordered industrial relations in the past, were struck down. There is no doubt that there was a good tradition of registered employment agreements in the area of public procurement contracts. That is an area where there is concern about unfair competition entering into the marketplace. We have had to take a great deal of time to make sure we have something that is constitutionally robust. I think we have a great deal of confidence that this has been achieved.

We have also tackled the issue of collective bargaining, which many people were very keen to see addressed in a balanced way that allows workers in circumstances in which there is no collective bargaining who are not getting fair terms and conditions to take cases ultimately to the Labour Court and thereby have their right to fair conditions vindicated. As Deputy Seán Kenny has pointed out, we have struck a balance here. There are good measures here to give workers genuine protections, including those he quoted, such as the genuine independence of the accepted bodies. We have built a protection against victimisation into this Bill. We have ensured the burden of proof will not expose workers who might be unfairly exposed. We have provided for comparability to look at pay levels in other similar areas, including collectively negotiated pay levels. On the other side, we have given the employer reasonable certainty that this mechanism will not be abused, that genuine negotiation will be recognised and that it will not be possible for this to be used by very small groups or used repetitively. We have ensured that employers will have certainty about the environment.

Deputy Deasy asked whether this could be construed as an instrument that might scare foreign direct investment. I assure him that is not the case. We have been careful to deal with both sides of this in the way we have done. We have made sure we understand the needs of foreign investors. As Deputy Neville has pointed out, they pay well. The IDA average pay is well ahead of the average industrial wage. They are good-paying companies. This legislation is designed to deal with circumstances in which employers will not bargain and will not offer rates that are comparable elsewhere. I think we have dealt with that.

I was reading the transcripts of the debates over the last two days. It is important to say that Deputy Maloney rightly put his finger on it when he said that a great deal of less-than-fair comment has been made. It has been suggested that the Government has used JobBridge to pretend it is providing employment, or to deliver employment that is not real. The CSO, which is an entirely independent body, has categorically shown that over the last two years, every single net job that has been created has been a full-time job. The number of part-time jobs has decreased. That is the truth of the matter and is there for everyone to read. We are delivering an economy with full-time employment. More than 105,000 people are back at work. That is a fantastic testimony to the ingenuity of Irish workers and businesses. They have gone further afield to win new markets and do new things. Bausch & Lomb offers a very good example of a workforce in a difficult situation that has reinvented the way it does things and won new investment. The voluntary approach to industrial relations, which has been at the core of our system, is delivering and has delivered in many workplaces, even in these very difficult times.

The collective representation of retired people was raised by a number of Deputies. I certainly recognise the concerns they expressed, because pension funds are being restructured in a way that is obviously a challenge for people. It is important to bear in mind that the industrial relations machinery we are talking about here is voluntary in nature. People enter into it on a voluntary basis. It does not hand down mandatory arbitration. That has not been the approach. Reference was made to the whole issue of how decisions are made. They are made under the trust deeds and the rules of pension funds. We have to find within that legislative area new ways of making sure people get their concerns heard. The Minister for Social Protection has made revised provisions to give people a chance to learn of proposals in advance and make submissions under the revised section 50 guidelines. There is a real consciousness of this issue. If the pension authority is issuing a unilateral direction under section 50 to the trustees, provision has been made for those who represent pensioners to have an opportunity to make representations to the authority in respect of those proposals.

I should say in passing that we will introduce a provision on Report Stage in the House to ensure that a person who had an industrial relations issue before he or she retired, but who ceased to be a "worker" within the definition of the Industrial Relations Acts after he or she retired, will still be able to pursue the legitimate industrial relations concern that arose before he or she retired. We are making provision for that.

A number of Deputies raised the serious issue of bogus self-employment. It is important to say we will be introducing enforcement measures on Committee Stage that will give considerable strength in the enforcement of registered employment agreements and sectoral orders, which are very prevalent within the construction sector. NERA is responsible for enforcing all elements of employment law, as Deputies are aware, but following the striking down of registered employment agreements, all it was in a position to enforce was the minimum wage, which obviously was much less than what was provided for in those agreements. I think we will be in a stronger position on foot of the reinstatement of the agreements. The issue of bogus self-employment is handled by the scope section in the Department of Social Protection, which makes swift decisions on the insurability of employment and the appropriate applicable class. NERA regularly refers cases to that section in the Department to ensure these provisions are not being used in an improper fashion. Given that NERA's activity included more than 5,500 inspections in 2014, including some inspections of construction sites, it is clear that it is taking a very active approach.

Some Deputies suggested that the Bill should be more specific in setting out what constitutes "substantially representative" and "not insignificant", which are two terms used in the Bill. When we were drafting the Bill, we gave careful consideration to whether it would be helpful to include a specific percentage. We concluded that on balance it would be better to leave that matter to the Labour Court to determine based on guidance provided in the Bill. As the Labour Court is the expert in this area, my view is that it should be allowed the discretion to make an informed judgment on the issues on a case-by-case basis.

The question of how to ensure accepted bodies are genuine was also raised. The Bill inserts a new subsection into the principal Act to give practical effect to the principle of the independence of an accepted body. Specifically, it provides guidance to the Labour Court on the criteria it should take into account when determining whether an accepted body is engaged in collective bargaining, as defined in the Act, and is genuinely independent of the employer.

The Bill makes it clear that where collective bargaining takes place with an excepted body it must be genuine and have a track record. In this regard a high bar is set.

Deputy Halligan raised voluntary engagements in collective bargaining. That reflects that the system of industrial relations in Ireland is a voluntarist one. He also raised an issue about failure to implement a recommendation of the Labour Court. The procedure there is that one can go back to the Labour Court and get a determination which is binding on both parties and enforceable in the Circuit Court.

I thank the Deputies for their participation in this debate. This Bill has been a long time in gestation because it was absolutely essential to bring the sides together in respect of a complex Bill where there are sensitivities on both sides, and we had to ensure that we could get something that would be balanced and fair to everyone. That has taken time. I thank my officials who invested a lot of time in dealing with all of the parties involved. What has emerged is a good Bill that will protect workers for the future, will give employers certainty and will promote a harmonious industrial relations environment where people can look forward to improvements in their standard of living as the economy and enterprise improve and win new opportunities and create new employment.

I commend the Bill to the House.

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