Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

What the organisations are seeking is a restoration of the link that existed and a clear recognition that these are services provided on behalf of the State. The State is the funder, as the Taoiseach himself has acknowledged. We are simply asking for that recognition and acknowledgment to translate, in a practical sense, to a decent offer of pay and conditions for the workers who are impacted and for the service users who will be impacted. As I have said, we in the Labour Party have consistently raised this issue over many months. My colleague Deputy Duncan Smith raised it in the first weeks following the Dáil's resumption last year. We also brought forward a motion last year. The Government's support for that motion recognises the need to move on this and yet the offer is derisory. It is below the rate of inflation. These are workers who love their jobs. We all know people who work in these services. They care deeply for service users but they are being forced out of the sector in search of better pay and conditions elsewhere. Will the Taoiseach grasp the nettle in advance of 17 October?

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