Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will also follow up on the point that was made regarding the importance of unions. We have seen the work that unions have done over many years with regard to dealing with exploitative practices. However, I do not think it is good enough that we are getting another case of kicking the can down the road. We will see what will actually happen over that 12-month period. We all accept that this is exploitative practice of young people. I thank People Before Profit for bringing this legislation forward.

We have all listened to some of the conversation in the public domain. It has been simplified in the sense of referring to young people who have no expenses and who are living at home, and that what their are being paid is just pocket money. We all know the realities, however. We are talking about students who have to pay huge levels of costs and the huge cost of accommodation in this State, but we are not dealing with those issues in any way, shape or form. We know many good employers are paying way above that. We know that at times, employers find it difficult to get workers but what we need to do is put the protection in for those who will exploit and who are willing and happy enough to pay €7.91 per hour for someone aged under 18 on the basis that they do not want to pay €11.30 for someone aged over 20. That is not something we would like to see continue. That is the reason why these issues have been rectified in Germany, Spain and Belgium. I would like to think we could add this State to that particular problem.

Deputy O'Reilly spoke about the particular issue with regard to apprenticeships. We all know the delays . Obviously, those delays have made it worse for people because of the very low wages they are on. We all know the travel costs and everything else that everybody across this State has seen increased and they are still dealing with this.

The fact is that this does not make any sense whatsoever in the modern age. It leaves absolute ruin in its wake, and, unfortunately, there will be employers who will be exploiting young people. That is just not good enough. This is about kicking it down the road for 12 months and then doing nothing about it, which has been the case. In fairness, the Bill before us is a follow-up to similar legislation and reflects the work that has been done by Senator Gavan. We just need to sort the matter quickly.

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