Results 1,461-1,480 of 12,682 for speaker:Louise O'Reilly

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: I thank the witnesses for coming in and for the evidence they have given us. My first question is for Ms McElwee. In her submission she says we currently have "clear and stable criteria for minimum wage setting", and a good portion of her submission is taken up with lauding the minimum wage-setting mechanisms and so on that exist already. Yet in IBEC's open letter to the Taoiseach the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: Sorry. I refer specifically to the bit where IBEC says there should be a pause in further increases in the national minimum wage set under the mechanism that Ms McElwee lauds in her submission. I ask her to speak just to that bit.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: That does not make sense to me. IBEC lauds the mechanism that establishes the minimum wage and at the same time says, while using that mechanism, that its members wish to put it back. There is a massive contradiction in that, which I am sure Ms McElwee can see. I appreciate that she comes in here to represent IBEC's members and that they are very well organised, and we will get on to that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: I hear exactly what Ms McElwee says and I understand the increase in costs-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: -----but what I do not understand is why the burden of that should be shifted onto the lowest-paid workers in the State. What I take from her comments is that there is a contradiction in IBEC's position in that Mr. McCoy says one thing in his open letter to the Taoiseach and Ms McElwee says another thing here. IBEC defends the mechanisms for setting the national minimum wage and then says...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: I am aware of that, and IBEC's members can of course go to the Labour Court and argue their case. They do not do that, which tells a story in itself, but they can. They are protected, and nobody, by the way, in this room or any other room, is calling for those protections to be lifted from IBEC's members. Those protections are important and they exist. The fact that IBEC's members do not...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: That is my assessment and, with respect, this is my time and I have other questions I want to get to, if I may. Mr. Reidy refers in his submission to a set of legislative changes, what I would loosely call and what Sinn Féin calls the right to organise. That is how we describe it. That is our campaign. That is what we say. It gives workers protection in legislation. As regards...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: Ms McElwee's submission states that little or no legislative change is required. That is at odds with what ICTU says. As regards the aspiration for union density, IBEC clearly represents a sector that is very heavily organised. It is not a trade union in the strictest sense of the word but it is a representative body, so its members are in the happy position of already being convinced of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: The representatives of workers here have said that legislative protection is required. Whether or not it is required to absolutely implement the bare minimum of the directive is separate to that. Does IBEC have a view about those legislative protections? In my opinion, on the face of it there is nothing that any decent employer would fear. Would it be IBEC's position that it would support...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: It just trips off the tongue, that one.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: I am obviously aware of the legislation in place. I am familiar with much of it. The ICTU has put a fairly clear position on the legislative changes that it believes are required to protect workers. I do not necessarily hear any hostility from Ms McElwee in that regard, but it is obviously something that would require further discussion. My time is tight, so I will be quick with this one....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: I am happy if Deputy Bruton wishes to go ahead.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: That is fine.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: I suppose we should all spare a thought for those poor employers who are only dying for their workers to join trade unions but the workers will not. That is in no way, shape or form my experience, and I have fairly extensive experience in the industrial relations arena, as does my father. I did not ring him or otherwise contact him, but I can say that was not his experience either. I am...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: I did not suggest it was not.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: In the model outlined by Mr. Reidy, there would be broader coverage for larger companies, direct bargaining for some and sectoral bargaining for others. Notwithstanding the issues with the JLC and other mechanisms, does Ms McElwee see that model as forming part of the work of transposing the directive to ensure it functions or will IBEC be advancing a different model?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: I will briefly touch on the issue of public procurement and procurement being used as a mechanism to drive or support workers' rights. All present have heard of cases relating to this issue. In light of the Cathaoirleach's warning, I will not name the cases specifically. One such case involved a cleaning company that provided services in a Department. Another involved a very large food...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: Sorry, just on this, the main reason was that the company did not have to. This was made clear to the people on the trade union side. There was absolutely no requirement on the company to engage at the WRC, despite the fact there was quite decent density among the workers and it was clearly the will of the workers to engage at the WRC. Notwithstanding the individual circumstances, there...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: Sorry, just-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Regulatory and Legislative Changes Required for the Transposition of the Adequate Minimum Wages Directive: Discussion (24 Jan 2024)

Louise O'Reilly: Part of the role of the Government is to promote-----