Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I too welcome the motion. Successive Governments have outsourced and undervalued health and social care work. Some of the most important State services around supporting vulnerable people, care for older people, addiction services, specialised health interventions and disability services are provided by dedicated and severely underpaid workers. Organisations such as CoAction and EmployAbility in west Cork fall into this category, as do other community care groups, homeless services and community employment, CE, schemes. These workers provide essential services. They do it because they are committed to helping other people and making Ireland a better place. For their efforts and diligence they are treated disgracefully. They are paid less than other professionals doing the same and comparable work in other organisations and State bodies and do not have pension entitlements. Not only have these workers been paid less for years, but they will be worse off in their old age.

This approach is leaving the sector in crisis. Community and voluntary organisations are experiencing an escalating crisis in staffing. Service delivery is being jeopardised as a result of challenges around staff recruitment and retention. This is mainly due to the disparity in pay and conditions between organisation staff and their public sector counterparts.

In our alternative budget, the Social Democrats called for an increase in the allocation across services budgets for section 39 organisations, Tusla-funded section 56 organisations and section 10 homeless services of a total of €80 million as a first step to addressing this disparity. Instead of investing in this sector and recognising highly skilled professions and the thousands of vulnerable people who benefit from their care, the Government went ahead with tax cuts and payments for the wealthier. In a budget of €11 billion, the Government chose not to address this major issue. Each Minister and Government backbencher understands the issue, yet it was not important enough to resolve, again showing where the Government's priorities are.

The Fórsa report, A New Systematic Funding Model, highlights that during the austerity era - that is the Fianna Fáil-Green Party and Fine Gael-Labour Governments - funding for the voluntary and community sector was slashed by between 35% and 45% and its staffing by 31%, with funding lines permanently flatlined at much lower levels. Not only are staff underpaid, the whole sector is vastly underfunded. The system is failing service users and workers and the Government has clearly shown it has no intention of resolving these issues.

This is a system designed by civil servants and facilitated by Ministers more concerned with balance sheets than caring for some of the most vulnerable people in our society. The services are provided by separate bodies, which reduces the responsibility of the Minister, Government, HSE, Tusla and local authorities. It costs less because the Government continues to underpay them.

When you stop and look at the situation, it is truly appalling. It shows how this and previous Governments view those workers and the services they provide. There will be supportive words said today, as always from Ministers and Government Deputies but, like clapping for healthcare workers during Covid, praise from Ministers will not pay bills.

Discussions on this issue have reduced workers rights and essential services to euphemisms. Section 39 organisations, section 56 organisations and section 10 homeless services are referred to as if they were abstract matters. This system was an intentional structure established and perpetuated by Governments. Section 39 organisations were created under the 2004 Health Act, introduced by the Fianna Fáil-Progressive Democrats Government, with the help of their supporters on the Independent benches. The then Minister for Health and Children, Mary Harney, who had just taken over the position from the current Taoiseach, was responsible for the Act's introduction. Section 56 organisations were created under to the Child and Family Agency Act 2013 brought in by the Fine Gael-Labour Government. That Act was introduced by the then Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Frances Fitzgerald. Section 10 homeless services were created under the Housing Act 1988. This was brought forward by the then Minister for the Environment, Pádraig Flynn, who was a member of a minority Fianna Fáil Government. Each of these Acts, introduced by parties represented here today - including some of the Deputies who supported them - enabled the creation of the structural inequality that lies at the heart of this issue.

When we are discussing the disgraceful treatment of highly skilled and dedicated professionals in the community and voluntary sector, we have to be honest. The problems started in this Chamber. Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, Progressive Democrats and Labour Governments established these systems and allowed glaring and disgraceful disparity to continue.

Any Deputy or party that claims to be serious about addressing the intentional shameful treatment of these workers and the services they provide must address the root cause of the issue.

Today’s motion, which will be ignored by the Government, draws welcome attention to the symptoms of a much larger problem which ultimately will need legislative changes to the primary Acts to guarantee the fair treatment of workers. The specific actions outlined in the motion are important steps to remedying the situation. The pay inequity needs to be resolved immediately and back-dated and there must be mechanisms for collective bargaining pay and conditions.

This motion also highlights the case of supervisors and workers in the community employment scheme, Tús and the rural social scheme. I have repeatedly raised the poor treatment of these workers. They are vital in supporting many rural and community organisations. Community halls, Tidy Towns, sports clubs and charity shops all have gained from the programme. It is also another form of outsourcing as functions formerly fulfilled by state bodies and local authorities are being carried out by these workers, or roles which in other jurisdictions are permanent pensionable jobs are being carried out by people for a small top up on social welfare rates.

Despite the great impact of these schemes providing unemployed people with skills and experience and offering services and assistance to communities and non-profit organisations, the workers are poorly remunerated and are too often met with restrictions and bureaucratic barriers.

In the budget, the Government announced a top-up payment to participants in the CE, Tús and rural social scheme of €5 to €25 per week. The Social Democrats in our alternative budget proposed to increase the top-up to €100 per week for participants of the rural social scheme and to reinstate the community employment, CE, scheme budget to €500 per participant, currently €325, per annum. The Government and the Department have to recognise that the cost of the programme is vastly outweighed by its impact on the ground.

All of this comes down to how we as a society see and value social and community work. The professionals in this area do incredible work often in extremely challenging contexts. Their pay and conditions in no way reflect this and, unfortunately, it has been a policy by many of the political parties in the Dáil to enable this approach. All these workers deserve proper pay. All these services need to be properly funded. Regrettably, the Government’s budget has shown that these urgent reforms will not be happening anytime soon.

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