Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The programme for Government is virtually silent on the question of workers' rights and there can be no even or fair recovery in the absence of a focus on collective bargaining and decent pay and wages. I acknowledge the welcome commitment in the programme to a living wage, but there is no timeline of any substance. What is required is for the riding instructions of the Low Pay Commission to be changed in legislation to give it a legal target to transform the national minimum wage rate to a living wage over the next period. In the absence of such a move, the aspiration to convert the minimum wage to a living wage will remain just that - a mere aspiration. Does the Taoiseach have any plans to amend the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 to give the Low Pay Commission a legal timeframe within which to work to deliver a living wage for the workers of this country? Will he confirm that the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation has received the annual report from the commission with recommendations on the rate of the national minimum wage for 2021? When will Cabinet consider that report, and will the Government accept the recommendation that is about to be lodged?

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