Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to discuss this Bill. Fianna Fáil has a long track record of supporting workers' rights and balanced industrial relations legislation. The constitutional right of citizens to form associations and unions is enshrined in our progressive Constitution, Bunreacht na hÉireann, which was introduced under Eamon de Valera back in 1937. My party has a strong record on worker protection from introducing the National Minimum Wage Act to instituting the labour relations machinery of the State by establishing the Labour Relation Commission, which is now the Workplace Relations Commission.

Furthermore, it has been a consistent policy of ours to end exploitable low-hour-type arrangements and we supported a Private Members' Bill on freelance workers' rights in the Seanad last year. I believe this Bill is being taken next week in the Dáil under Private' Members time also and look forward to discussing its legislative proposals.

However, having reviewed the Bill before us, Fianna Fáil will not be supporting it for a number of reasons. There are many weaknesses and much legal ambiguity in the Bill, which would place excessive and disproportionate regulatory requirements on existing enterprises, fundamentally risking the strong FDI footprint in Ireland, which employs some 200,000 people directly. Significantly, it could undermine the current functioning of the Workplace Relations Commission and give rise to serious data protection concerns. This Bill is not fit for purpose and sends out the message that Ireland is closed for business to international investors.

There is a strong body of industrial relations law currently in operation in Ireland. The Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2015, enacted just over 18 months ago, struck a proportionate balance between increased collective bargaining rights and anti-victimisation provisions for workers, while maintaining the voluntarist approach to collective bargaining in Ireland. Importantly both main social partners had a direct role in shaping this legislation to ensure it would work in the best interests of workers and employers.

Were all the main social partners consulted on this Sinn Féin Bill? Were labour officials in the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation consulted? Were representatives from the Workplace Relations Commission consulted? If yes, I would be very curious to hear their feedback. As the Fianna Fáil spokesperson, I was not lobbied by ICTU or any other trade union, with the exception of Mandate. I received three or four e-mails on it. I received correspondence from Deputy Cullinane, who invited me to a briefing. Other than that nobody asked to meet me about it and I have not received any big lobby on it. I look forward to getting clarification on the consultation that was carried out in drafting the Bill.

The first cases under the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2015 are only working through the industrial relations system now. It would be premature to change this legislation at this early stage. The 2015 legislation is progressive and has the capacity significantly to improve the rights of workers seeking to negotiate collectively with employers through their unions. It provides an avenue for workers through their trade unions to secure improvements in pay and conditions when an employer refuses to engage in collective bargaining. This means, in cases where it can be demonstrated that collective bargaining does not exist in a company, a group of workers have a right to a hearing at the Labour Court where they can be represented by a trade union and have their case examined. In these cases, legislation allows for the Labour Court to make a determination in a dispute, which can then be enforced by way of a Circuit Court order.

Ultimately, the 2015 Act will be judged by its ability to resolve industrial disputes. My party will carefully monitor this situation and the need for any potential future changes, provided there is clear evidence showing that the existing industrial relations architecture needs to be strengthened in this regard.

Significantly, the Bill fails to differentiate between unionised and non-unionised employers. It provides that all employers, regardless of whether they are unionised or non-unionised, must allow a union representative access to its employees at the workplace at any time during working hours. This is clearly not a proportionate piece of legislation. The Bill fails to recognise the voluntarist industrial relations model operating in Ireland. It is claimed that Ireland's voluntarist approach is key to our ability to attract foreign investment. The Bill empowers a union representative to enter any workplace and "monitor compliance" with collective agreements and legislation regarding employment rights. In effect, it could undermine the current functioning role of the Workplace Relations Commission.

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