Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I cited sea fisheries as an example. The Minister of State should have read the question carefully. Whoever called his officials mandarins was correct. My question is about the retention and recruitment of staff and the current policy in respect of recognition of representative associations of the Defence Forces.

PDFORRA recently took the Government to court over the Organisation of Working Time Act. Is the Minister of State not ashamed and embarrassed that he had to be taken to court for the Defence Forces to have their basic working rights enforced? Imagine that. The Government has legislation on workers' rights but will not implement it for the Defence Forces or members of the Naval Service and Air Corps. How demoralised does the Minister of State want to make these people? The figures are available for the number of people who are buying their way out of the most demoralised, low paid job in the public sector, and the Minister of State sits in denial as if he was going on his holidays somewhere. What is going on here is an absolute scandal. Members of the Naval Service, Army and Air Corps are being treated like dirt by the Government in many aspects of how they have to live their lives. They cannot acquire homes. They are being pushed out of married quarters in the most awful conditions in barracks such as Cathal Brugha Barracks. I refer in particular to low pay and the lack of recognition for the trade union, PDFORRA. The Minister of State's continued denial of the right to union recognition is not serving him well.

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