Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity)
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"Unfortunately, we have closed the shop in Blackpool. There won't be any need for any staff member to attend work from now on. You will be contacted by people as regards how to claim your redundancy and all the other bits and pieces. Thank you for your service over the years. Kind regards, Sean Nyhan".

This is the text message that was sent to a Butcher's Block manager in the middle of the night last Friday night-Saturday morning, informing workers - some of whom had 20 years of service - that their jobs were gone five weeks before Christmas. What does the Minister of State, Deputy Feighan, make of that? What the ex-employer described as "all the other bits and pieces" include back pay, holiday pay, and time in lieu. I spoke to one couple who both work there. They are owed approximately €1,500 in back pay and holiday pay. This is outrageous treatment from the former employer.

This situation is compounded by the outrageous inaction of the Minister of State's Government. Why is it that one and half years after the Debenhams strike the Government has failed to pass legislation to improve workers' rights in a liquidation situation? Why might these workers have to go down the queue to get what is owed to them in a liquidation? When will the Government support the passage of the Companies (Protection of Employees’ Rights in Liquidations) Bill 2021 - known as the Debenhams Bill - through the Houses of the Oireachtas?

There has been an outpouring of sympathy and solidarity from the ordinary people of Cork to these workers. What has happened to these workers has rung alarm bells for other workers - and by the way, the shops that will close are not just the ones in Cork, they are in Dungarvan and in the midlands also. This needs to ring alarm bells for other working people. It is no great secret that a recession is on the way. It is no great secret either that the way these workers have been treated is far from exceptional. It is only a couple of weeks since we saw one of the biggest names in international capitalism, namely Twitter, get a new owner. The richest man in the world, Mr. Elon Musk - the man who wants to colonise Mars - sacked workers in that company by way of an email. Those workers were sacked by email and then a couple of weeks later we have these workers being sacked by way of a text message. This is becoming more common.

What we need, and what I advocate, is not just improved legislation for workers' rights - pass the Debenhams Bill - it is for workers themselves to prepare for the coming recession. Given the type of hard-nosed employers we are dealing with in these situations the message from me to workers is the same as the message that was necessary ten years ago, 20 years ago, and 100 years ago: organise, organise, and organise again.

Tonight, however, I want to put the spotlight on the Government and the question of legislation and why there is not sufficient legislation there to protect fully these workers.

Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this very important issue. It was raised in the Dáil this morning too.

I extend my sympathies to the workers in the Butcher's Block, who are now suddenly facing job losses. The way in which this was handled was cold and lacked compassion. It is no way to treat hardworking, loyal workers. We have to protect and support workers. The Government and I appreciate how difficult this situation is for those involved and their families, particularly at Christmas time.

The Government is acutely aware of the difficulties businesses have faced in recent times. The financial assistance provided during the pandemic was unprecedented. The Government continues to support businesses, especially in the context of higher business costs, particularly energy costs. Budget 2023 introduced a package of new measures to help businesses across a wide range of sectors to deal with rising costs. Those measures include the temporary business energy support scheme, TBESS, the Ukraine credit guarantee scheme, the Ukraine enterprise scheme and the new growth and sustainability loan scheme. All these actions are focused on supporting continued employment.

Where businesses close, Ireland has a robust suite of employment rights legislation to protect and to support workers. By law, it is the employer's responsibility to pay statutory redundancy and other outstanding wage-related entitlements to workers. Where an employer is genuinely unable to pay these entitlements due to financial difficulties or insolvency, the State provides a safety net and may make the payments on the employer's behalf from the Social Insurance Fund.

The Protection of Employment Act 1977 imposes certain legal obligations on employers proposing collective redundancies, including an obligation to engage in an information and consultation process with employees' representatives and to provide information on the proposed redundancies. Those obligations apply where more than 20 workers are employed and depending on the number at risk of redundancy. The proposed collective redundancy must be notified to the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. There is no obligation on the employer to notify the Minister of proposed redundancies outside the parameters of collective redundancy legislation. However, under the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Act 1973, employers must provide employees with statutory periods of minimum notice, which vary depending on the length of service.

The Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, is the organisation mandated to secure compliance with employment rights. Employees have the right to refer complaints to the commission on a wide range of employment law breaches, including those relating to statutory minimum notice, for adjudication and compensation where appropriate.

I assure the Deputy that the Government will work in a co-ordinated way to assist these workers. The Department of Social Protection will assist in respect of income supports and employment and training opportunities.

Again, I extend my sympathies to the workers in the Butcher's Block. As I said, the way this was handled was clumsy and cold and lacked compassion.

Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity)
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I asked the Minister of State a question and, in response, he read out a prepared script. The script dealt with many different points but did not deal with the core question I asked him, so I will use my time to go back over that.

The response he gave states that if push comes to shove, the State will pay statutory redundancy to the workers who have lost their jobs in Cork, Dungarvan and the midlands. However, I asked him not just about statutory or minimum redundancy but also what happens to the holiday pay and back pay due to these workers and what happens to the tip jars that belong to them. The workers, when they got the text message on Saturday morning, passed on by the manager, hurried down to the shops. They could not get in because the shops were shuttered and locked up. The locks had been changed. By all appearances, the places had been cleaned out. What was on the counter, including the workers' tip jar, was no longer there. Talk about cold and callous. What is the story there?

As for the key question I am asking the Minister of State, he pointed to the Social Insurance Fund, but the liquidation laws state that there are those other than the workers who are first in the queue for access to that fund and if there is not enough money in the kitty to deal with such situations, the workers will lose out on what I regard as entitlements, what should be their entitlements and what would be their entitlements if the Debenhams Bill was passed. The question I am asking the Minister of State, therefore, is when the Government will ensure that legislation or equivalent legislation is passed in order that workers can vindicate their rights in redundancies, rather than facing the situation that the Debenhams workers faced and that now threatens the workers in the Butcher's Block.

Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy has outlined many different issues, including the tip jars, holiday pay and back pay. I will bring those concerns to the Minister.

The Debenhams Bill, or legislation like it, does not come under the remit of my Department, but I will bring the Deputy's suggestion to the Minister.

The Government appreciates the impact this dispute has on the affected workers, and the Minister is disappointed by the suddenness of the announcement. For its part, the State will do all it can to support the workers at this most difficult time. We will ensure that eligible employees receive statutory redundancy and other outstanding wage-related entitlements from the Social Insurance Fund. As the Deputy will be aware, under the redundancy payment scheme, an eligible employee is entitled to two weeks' statutory redundancy payment for every year of service plus a bonus week, subject to a ceiling of €600 per week. In insolvencies, entitlements covered under the insolvency payments scheme include outstanding arrears and wages, holiday pay and payments in lieu of minimum notice, subject to certain limits.

Finally, the Department of Social Protection is aware of this issue and is available to assist these workers. I urge all those who are affected to contact their local Intreo centres for advice and support.

As I said, the Deputy has raised a lot of issues and I will bring them back to the Minister.