Dáil debates
Thursday, 14 November 2019
Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate
Job Losses
4:40 pm
Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for taking this important Topical Issue.
Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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It is good to see a Donegal man interested in north County Dublin.
Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent)
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We are expanding our interests.
Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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I was confused myself.
Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent)
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We have to look and see what other parts of the country are doing as well to see whether they are keeping up to speed with us.
SK biotek Ireland, based in Swords, County Dublin, has laid off approximately 150 staff. This is a serious situation. Only a year ago the company made an agreement that it would guarantee the terms and conditions of the staff for five years and yet here it is now laying off staff. The workers are left with no option but to strike to highlight their issues of concern.
The company refuses to attend the Workplace Relations Committee unless the staff agree to its preconditions on talking to them. This is viewed by staff as unreasonable and coercive, and the company's response is to lay off the employees directly involved in manufacturing. I believe that the staff members are right and we should not tolerate any employer trying to dictate the terms of a negotiation. I believe the Minister should not either, and that the Government should protect their rights. This is a complete breach of workplace relations in this country and the Minister needs to act now to ensure that the company respects its workforce and the office of the State, that is, the Workplace Relations Commission.
We have even seen a letter in recent days sent by the company informing workers that if they participate in a picket on the plant, they are making themselves unavailable for work and will not be entitled to jobseeker's benefit. Now the company is the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection as well, advising workers on what is happening there. The Government cannot allow this to continue.
The Government must take a stance in terms of protecting workers' rights and protecting the arms of the State charged with protecting the rights of those workers. It has to get involved in this situation and get SK biotek to come to the table without any preconditions.
Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independent)
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As has been said, over 150 workers at north Dublin pharmaceutical plant face being put on unpaid leave from today. Shift workers at SK biotek in Swords will be put on protective notice.
Connect trade union shop steward Ms Ruth Russell has said that SK biotek bought the plant from Bristol-Myers Squibb and signed an agreement protecting staff terms and conditions of employment. This transfer of undertakings, protection of employment, TUPE, agreement is there to protect workers' pay and conditions for a period. That agreement was to last up to 2022. Within six months, this company, SK biotek, issued a 22-page document detailing a raft of changes which, Ms Russell claims, the company has refused to negotiate. SIPTU members are also involved in that. There are 94 SIPTU members and the remainder of the 150 are Connect members. They rightly have taken industrial action.
This is outside the bounds of the labour laws in this country.
The TUPE regulation is a recognised part of legislation in this country, but the company is railroading and threatening the workers. Deputy Pringle referred to the letter which states:
While colleagues on Lay Off may have entitlement to Job Seekers Benefit you should also note that colleagues involved in Picketing due to Industrial Action have no entitlement to same. In addition to this, I must advise that should any colleague engage in Picketing for any period of the duration of Lay Off this also will disqualify them from Job Seekers Benefit. To receive Job Seekers Benefit colleagues must be readily available for work.
This has been used against workers previously.
This is a multinational company that is ignoring the industrial relations machinery in place and the Government has a policy of bringing such companies into the country. It is trying to put the workers under pressure, even before they go to the WRC by making them accept onerous terms. The Government must step in and instruct multinational companies that they cannot treat workers in this country in that way.
4:50 pm
Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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I am replying on behalf of the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Humphreys, who cannot attend, for which she apologises. Naturally, she is very much aware of the regrettable ongoing issue at SK Biotek in Swords. I acknowledge that workplace disputes are never welcome news for workers, employers and the economy. That is why we hope this issue can be resolved as soon as possible.
As to how it has arisen, the Minister understands the company has placed a number of its employees on protective notice. This has resulted in the temporary laying off of up to 142 staff. Not all of the firm's workers, however, have been similarly affected. The company's decision followed a dispute between management and staff at the plant which had resulted in industrial action being taken in recent weeks. The company has stated its core manufacturing operations had to be closed down on account of the industrial action. I understand the company has written formally to the trade unions involved and asked that it re-engage with the firm through the Workplace Relations Commission. The Deputies have a different version, but it is something we can check out.
Clearly, it is in the interests of both sides that the dispute does not continue. As matters stand, the facility is not operating as normal and employees are temporarily out of work. Therefore, I urge both parties to engage meaningfully with each another and through the industrial relations machinery of the State in an effort to find a solution. I am also aware of how significant an employer the company is in the north Dublin area, with 370 people normally working at its facility in Swords. To be clear in responding to Deputy Joan Collins, we support all of those involved in job creation, both in indigenous companies of all sizes and multinational companies that locate here. We have a very pro-jobs environment, as well as a pro-employee environment. There is strong legislation in place to support it.
As this is a key industry with valuable jobs, it is important that the issue be resolved. Industrial relations disputes such as the one we are discussing are not easy to resolve. They can weaken trust between the workforce and management and cause great anxiety and concern for workers and their families. Clearly, they do not contribute to the positive enterprise environment we are trying to create in this country. The reality is that both workers and employers have rights and responsibilities that must be respected. I hope balance can be restored as soon as possible. That is why the Government will continue to urge both sides to the dispute to enter into constructive discussions as soon as possible. It is in the interests of all those involved to draw a line under the dispute which I hope can be achieved very soon by engaging in discussions through the industrial relations machinery of the State which does a good job in such situations. That is the job it was set up to do.
Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent)
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I thank the Minister of State for his response and appreciate that the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, cannot be present, which is fair enough. However, it is vital that the Government take a proactive role in dealing with this dispute. None of us wants to see the jobs lost or workers out on strike. However, the company has taken a very negative position, of which we have proof. It appears from the Minister of State's response that the Department might be getting only one side of the story. We must be proactive and state the company must be willing to offer to engage in negotiations without preconditions. The trade unions involved do not want there to be any precondition as that is the only way the dispute will be resolved. The Government must play its part in that regard and demand that both sides to the dispute go to the Workplace Relations Commission to negotiate without preconditions. That is where the negotiations can take place.
Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independent)
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I echo what Deputy Pringle said. Some of the workers have been working at the plant for over 30 years. They have invested their lives in the companies that have operated at it. SK Biotek commenced operations at the plant in December 2017 and gave a commitment to bring forward a contract of five years under the transfer of undertakings legislation. That is important legislation in protecting workers' rights. It was used when workers transferred from the local authorities to private companies providing bin collection and other services. Multinational companies should be told specifically that they must abide by the undertakings given. They cannot come back with a new set of onerous conditions after six months and tell the workers that they must accept them before going to the WRC. It is welcome that the company has written to the trade unions and that they have stated they do not want preconditions. I hope SK Biotek will also do the same and that the matter will be resolved. Nobody wants to be outside the gates six weeks before Christmas or after being employed for 30 years in the same manufacturing company.
Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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I thank both Deputies for their intervention by raising this issue. With reference to the TUPE regulation and the obligations in that regard, it is not for me to adjudicate on how the dispute should be resolved. We have apparatus in place to do just that. To be clear, regulations are in place and they are the same for all employers, be they multinational companies or otherwise. We do not differentiate in employment law between multinational and local smaller companies. All employers have responsibilities and there is a legal apparatus in place to ensure they are fulfilled. That legal apparatus does a good job. It is not for a Minister or a politician to step in and make that judgment call. The apparatus in place is successful and the legislation is very strong. We need to get it going.
I share the Deputies' concerns about the situation at the company. It is always a source of regret for me and the Minister to see people out of work, either temporarily or otherwise and certainly in the run-up to Christmas in six weeks' time, but it is not for the Minister or the Government to adjudicate on the source of the dispute between the employees and company management. Undoubtedly, there are different versions. I am not saying there is only one. We do not have all of the facts and I do not believe any of us does. Respective Governments have worked hard over the decades to put in place a strong and robust industrial relations framework in the State which is supported by all Members of the House. That framework is in place to deal with these regrettable disputes. It is, therefore, the proper forum in which to address substantial difficulties such as those that have arisen in this case.
We should be as optimistic as possible. The Minister and I are not aware of any reason the dispute cannot be resolved. I believe that is true for the two Deputies also. The company has a strong presence in Ireland. The employees value their jobs and, as Deputy Joan Collins said, have a long history of working at that plant under different ownership for 20 to 30 years. They are valuable jobs. Therefore, I urge both sides to the dispute to engage constructively together to have the difficulties resolved in order that workers can return to work and the facility can operate normally once more. Many others are dependent on it.