Results 701-720 of 1,637 for speaker:Marie Sherlock

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (3 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: Today is our first sitting since May Day on Monday and since the Workers' Memorial Day last Friday. Of course, while May Day is a great celebration of the achievements by the trade union movement and by workers, it is also a time to reflect on the enormous challenges for workers. A group of workers who were fired from the company Murphy International in Limerick came to Leinster House some...

Seanad: National Minimum Wage (Inclusion of Apprentices) Bill 2023: Order for Second Stage (3 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: I move: “That Second Stage be taken today.”

Seanad: National Minimum Wage (Inclusion of Apprentices) Bill 2023: Second Stage (3 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: I move: “That the Bill be now read a Second Time.” I wish to share time with Senator Mark Wall.

Seanad: National Minimum Wage (Inclusion of Apprentices) Bill 2023: Second Stage (3 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Calleary, for his attendance. Right across the House, most of us accept there is a massive and urgent need to build homes. There are over 12,000 homeless women, men and children out there, with thousands more living from week to week and month to month, not knowing where they are going to live next. That puts pressure on us all to ensure that homes are...

Seanad: National Minimum Wage (Inclusion of Apprentices) Bill 2023: Second Stage (3 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit. I thank all the Senators for contributing. The reason we brought the Bill forward now is there is an urgent situation with regard to construction labour, in addition to a cost-of-living crisis, which the Minister of State acknowledged. While there was defensiveness on the Government side with regard to figures last year and the year before,...

Seanad: National Minimum Wage (Inclusion of Apprentices) Bill 2023: Second Stage (3 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: The key point is the Government does not have the figures for this year, there was a dramatic drop last year, and it has not provided any evidence-----

Seanad: National Minimum Wage (Inclusion of Apprentices) Bill 2023: Second Stage (3 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: -----as to what happened last year.

Seanad: National Minimum Wage (Inclusion of Apprentices) Bill 2023: Second Stage (3 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: The key point is that a modest request is on the table, which is that we ensure every worker in this country is paid the minimum wage and that if somebody is doing an apprenticeship that involves work and education, he or she will be paid the minimum wage.To go back to what I said at the start of the debate, it is to get away from that misty-eyed notion that it is young lads of 16 and 17...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: IBEC and Science Foundation Ireland: Discussion (3 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: I very much support a single model. Ms McGee is absolutely right that apprenticeships do not happen if there is not an employer in place. There are two aspects to that. The first is employer size, and I do not know whether IBEC believes that is an issue in certain sectors. The second is the issue apprenticeship pay. We are hearing from certain sectors that, particularly in the first...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: IBEC and Science Foundation Ireland: Discussion (3 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: I thank Science Foundation Ireland and IBEC for attending the hearing this morning. I am sorry that I have come late to the hearing here. I have quite a narrow and specific question. The question relates to apprenticeship and I suppose it is very much directed to IBEC. I would say at the outset it is incredible to think that we have such a surplus in the National Training Fund. There...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (11 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: I have swapped speaking slots with Senator Higgins.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (11 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: Yesterday, a meeting took place between the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, and the retail forum. It was held in the context of an increase in food prices of more than 10% in just ten months. Even though the war in Ukraine kicked off in February last year, there was a delayed impact on food prices, which began to increase in May 2022. The 10% increase in ten months has happened...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Engagement with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (10 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: I thank the Minister very much for coming here. I want to ask him about the employment part of his portfolio or brief, particularly with regard to construction skills. We obviously have a significant need to ramp up housebuilding and with that goes a big demand for construction labour. There are a number of proposals circulating at the moment. Last week the Labour Party brought forward...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Engagement with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (10 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: That is under the general employment permit though, as opposed to the critical skills employment permit.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Engagement with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (10 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: That is great. The Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, published its annual report yesterday and we saw that of the 5,820 inspections it conducted last year, 5,700 workplaces were found to be in contravention of employment law. That is 98% of all inspections. We can make two interpretations of that. One is that lawbreaking is widespread across Irish workplaces, though I am not convinced...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Engagement with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (10 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: I did not say that, but of the inspections undertaken there was a 98% contravention rate, which seems an enormous figure. I appreciate it is risk-based. I apologise for interrupting the Minister, but that 98% means almost every workplace inspected was found to have an issue. That is too high, frankly.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Engagement with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (10 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: I thank the Minister.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (16 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: It is an absolute shame for our country that those seeking asylum and refuge in our country were subjected to appalling acts of hate over the weekend in Sandwith Street. Indeed, we see very disturbing scenes again today with the blockade in Clare. There is responsibility on us all to call out the hate and the bile which is being directed towards very vulnerable persons right now. We must...

Seanad: Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme Bill 2022: Committee Stage (16 May 2023)

Marie Sherlock: The Minister has sat through many hours of debates in the Dáil and the Seanad at this stage and, of course, countless other hours in internal meetings. Therefore, he knows the strongly-held views of many of us in this House, those of many of his colleagues in Government, the survivor groups, and even the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. We have to ask how we are still in this...