Dáil debates

Thursday, 28 May 2020

Estimates for Public Services 2020 - Vote 37 - Employment Affairs and Social Protection (Revised Estimate)

 

1:50 pm

Photo of Mick BarryMick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

In her introductory remarks the Minister said that the Revised Estimates are proposed on a no-policy change basis. The Minister also said that she intends to bring forward proposals for some changes within the next week or so. I believe it is fairly clear as to what those policy changes might include. It has been pretty well flagged by Government Ministers and Fianna Fáil Front Bench spokespersons over the last week. Government Ministers have said that the €350 pandemic unemployment payment is unsustainable. Supermac's boss, Pat McDonagh, has said that he cannot recruit staff because the €350 payment is discouraging people from taking up part-time work. Fianna Fáil's Deputy Anne Rabbitte has claimed that some people are a hell of a lot better off with the pandemic payment. In other words, the changes being lined up seem likely to include plans to cut the payment for low-paid, part-time workers. These changes will be introduced by the Government without a vote in the House. That is not to say those changes could not be stopped by the parties in the Chamber today. Negotiations are taking place for the formation of Government. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have made it pretty clear where they stand on these issues, but where does the Green Party stand? We have heard a lot from the Green Party recently about the need for social justice. During the programme for Government negotiations will the Green Party demand the payment not be cut for low-paid workers? The Green Party should tell us.

When one considers the people who are targeting the payment one can see real double standards at play here. One of the highest paid prime ministers on the planet is warning of the need to cut the incomes of people who are on €350 per week, and a businessman worth some €100 million, with three separate chains of pubs and fast-food outlets on two continents, is agitating for cutting incomes of people on €350 per week.

Pay decent wages and the payment will be no barrier to people taking up employment. The national minimum wage should be €15 an hour. If Mr. McDonagh wants to start paying his workers €15 an hour, all he will need to do is give a worker just three eight-hour shifts in a week and they will be earning more than the payment.

Are there part-time workers receiving more with the payment than they did on wages? There is quite a bit of twisting of facts going on about this one. Take the example of a worker who worked part-time half the week and then signed on for the other half. Yes, their wages may have been less than €350 per week. However, their income was over €350. This worker has had their income cut but because their wage was less than €350, they now have to listen to Ministers banging on about them being better off on the pandemic unemployment payment. This is simply not true.

Concern has been expressed about the ability of the State to sustain these payments into the medium term. If the State provided jobs with decent pay, the numbers claiming the payment would wither on the vine. The wealthy should be taxed to sustain the payments. Ten individuals own €53 billion in Irish society. It is time for wealth taxes. While the Government is at it, it should go after the €14.3 billion of our money which is sitting in a bank account.

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