Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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57. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on expanding the powers of the Workplace Relations Commission to police compliance with sectoral employment orders, employment regulation orders and registered employment agreements; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22056/23]

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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The question is to ask the Minister for his views on expanding the powers of the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, to police compliance with sectoral employment orders, SEOs, employment regulation orders, EROs, and registered employment agreements, REAs.

Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy O'Reilly for raising this issue as well as for her engagement in committee on this issue. As we saw with the recent introduction of an SEO for the construction sector, these are important tools for our workers and must be enforced. It is the role of the WRC to inspect and I am open to further considering its role and powers to ensure SEO minimum rates of pay and terms and conditions are fully upheld and enforced.

The WRC is an independent statutory office under the aegis of my Department. Its primary functions include the inspection of employment law compliance, the provision of information on employment law, mediation, adjudication, conciliation, facilitation and advisory services. WRC inspectors have specific powers relating to accessing workplaces, inspecting, copying or taking records, and the questioning of persons in a workplace. It is an offence to obstruct or interfere with an inspector, provide false information or documents to an inspector, or impede an inspector in carrying out his or her duties.

While WRC inspectors operate on a compliance model basis and focus on bringing instances of breaches of employment law into compliance, inspectors also have robust enforcement instruments available to deal with continuing or persistent events of non-compliance. These instruments include criminal prosecution, compliance notices and fixed penalty notices. Inspectors may be accompanied by members of An Garda Síochána or other inspectors where necessary. In 2022, 103 inspections were carried out with An Garda Síochána, 113 joint inspections with officers of the Department of Social Protection and 57 joint inspections with officers of the Revenue Commissioners.

In 2022, WRC inspectors closed 3,943 inspection cases and carried out 5,820 inspection site visits. More than €1.4 million in unpaid wages was recovered and returned to employees. Eighty-nine employers were prosecuted in 2022, with successful outcomes in 69 cases. Where matters cannot be resolved at an employer or trade union level, redress for complaints claiming non-compliance by employers in sectors subject to statutory orders should be directed to WRC adjudication and conciliation services.

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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A total of €20 million in withheld wages has been recouped through the WRC since 2011. I will take this opportunity to say that if it could do that with the limited resources it has had, imagine what it could do if the Minister of State improved resources and increased the number of inspectors to the number agreed in 2006.

We all support SEOs, EROs and REAs, but time and again there are situations where they are being undermined because some employers are refusing to comply with them. That, in effect, gives a competitive advantage to an employer who is dodging it. The employer who is paying the correct rate finds him or herself becoming less competitive because his or she is trying to do the right thing.

I welcome that the Minister of State is open to looking at the powers of the WRC. When he considers that, I ask that he consider specifically policing SEOs and EROs, because when they are not complied with, they distort the labour market. It is unfair on workers and on employers.

Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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I do not wish to revive the complete debate we had at committee a couple of weeks ago which was weird for both of us, when we kept agreeing with each other across the committee room. I do not wish to be doing too much of that, but I fundamentally believe that sectoral employment orders, SEOs, are a strong part of what we have in our industrial relations sector and are crucial for our economy and the workers at hand. When they work, they work extremely well. I am very hopeful for the new SEO in the construction sector. This is something that is agreed upon between employees and employers alike. However, the Deputy is right. We are open to discussing and looking into both the role and the powers of the WRC, but appreciate fully that it requires resources in funding from the Department, as well as the employment of additional inspectors where required. If those efforts are made and put in place - the request has come regularly from other members of the trade union movement, as well as in this House - looking at the specific orders and their enforcement will make sense.

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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In advance of doing any of this, the Minister of State could choose only to spend taxpayers' money where workers' rights are respected and only do business with those companies that respect the SEOs, employment regulation orders, EROs, and registered employment agreements, REAs. These agreements show not only the power of trade unions, but they ensure better pay and conditions for workers which is very important. If the agreements are undermined and the rates of pay are not upheld and if those companies get rewarded with contracts from the Government, it sends a very poor message to workers, as does the under-resourcing of the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC. However, a specific unit to look at the employment agreements and ensure they are upheld will have a benefit across the board, not just for employees and workers, but for employers.

Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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What we have seen over the past year or two is additional resources provided to the WRC and additional inspectors and cases go through the WRC. The Deputy would have read the annual report earlier in the week of the activities of the WRC in 2002, which saw an increase in the number of cases, resolutions and inspections, which are all good things. We remain optimistic and ambitious for the role of the WRC, aware of the vital part it plays in ensuring industrial harmony, but also ensuring the rights of workers are protected and the rights of employers are also protected, because the strength of an SEO is in common agreement between employer and employee alike; they come together for a mutual gain. That strength is well recognised. The SEO works when employers engage fruitfully to ensure that the SEO is recognised and developed. We wish to make sure employers are awarded for doing so and play their part more widely.