Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I also thank Deputy Paul Murphy and People Before Profit for introducing this legislation. This is an issue on which Senator Gavan has been campaigning for some time. He has done a massive amount of work. To discriminate against some people in society with sub-minimum rates of pay, which is what we are discussing, goes against the principle of equal pay for equal work. Such discrimination does not take into account the unique situations in which some of our people find themselves. It is also a poor reflection on the social conscience that we should be conveying an legislators. Young workers are not immune to the rising cost of living we are all facing. They also face that issue on a daily basis. Five years after Senator Gavan introduced legislation to abolish the exploitative practice of sub-minimum rates of pay, we are here again. That is because of inaction on the part of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael-led Governments through the years. That is why we are back here again talking about the national minimum wage. It is simple. I do not care what age a person is from 16 upwards. If at any age you do the same work as anybody else, you are entitled to the same rate of pay.

It is not all businesses but some businesses are exploiting the situation. Some young people are doing the same type of work as others for unequal pay. That practice has been abolished in Germany, Spain, South Korea, Canada and Belgium. It is about time the Government got the finger out and abolished the practice here so that everybody is treated equally. We are looking for a workforce that is attractive to all. Let that get out there. We are talking about this issue on a continuous basis in this Chamber. With employment levels as they are, we should be balancing the playing field rather than skewing it in favour of older people at the expense of younger people. As Mandate Trade Union has stated, this is an outdated and old-fashioned concept based on the belief that young workers who are living at home do not face the same issues as older workers. As I said earlier, it should not matter where a young person lives. If they are doing a set amount of work that is the same as an older person, they should get the exact same pay. There should be no more of the Mickey Mouse legislation that is there. It needs to be changed. We give out all the time that apprentices are not taking up apprenticeships. They are on the lowest possible minimum wage. They are looking at their friends who are labouring for double their wages. It is a no-brainer. We need to tackle the money apprentices are getting and level that playing field so we entice more people into apprenticeships. The Government will keep saying it and we will keep saying it on this side of the House. That is where we are falling down in this country. We are not enticing young people into apprenticeships as we should be. I hope the Minister of State takes this on board so we are not back here in another couple of years repeating the same things.

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