Results 8,501-8,520 of 9,147 for speaker:Pat Breen

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Quarrying Sector (30 Jan 2018)

Pat Breen: All mining or quarrying for scheduled minerals requires either a Lease under the Minerals Development Act 1940 for minerals in State ownership, or a Licence under the 1979 Minerals Development Act for privately owned minerals, both are issued by the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and the Environment. Under the terms of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, the...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Trade Union Recognition (30 Jan 2018)

Pat Breen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 339 and 340 together. Under Irish law, there is no requirement for an employer to recognise trade unions for the purpose of collective bargaining. Article 40 of the Irish Constitution guarantees the right of citizens to form associations and unions.  It has been established in a number of legal cases that the constitutional guarantee of the freedom...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Disability Allowance Appeals (30 Jan 2018)

Pat Breen: 609. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection when an application by a person (details supplied) will be processed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4388/18]

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Industrial Relations (6 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: Following extensive consideration by Government in late 2016 and a commitment to examine issues around providing access by the representative associations of An Garda Síochána to the services of the Workplace Relations Commission and the Labour Court, the Minister for Justice set up an interdepartmental group. This group was chaired by John Murphy to consider various issues,...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Rights (6 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 303 and 304 together. The Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 (OWTA) provides for statutory rights for employees in relation to rest, maximum working time and holidays and derives from a European Union Directive dating from 1993. I would like to draw the deputy's attention to the fact that since September 2017, policy responsibility for...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Trade Union Recognition (7 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 54 and 60 together. Industrial Relations in Ireland is essentially voluntary in nature and under Irish law, there is no requirement for an employer to recognise trade unions for the purposes of collective bargaining. While article 40 of the Irish Constitution guarantees the right of citizens to form associations and unions it has been established in a...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Fishing Vessel Safety (7 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 56, 63, 152, 154, 156 and 157 together. At the outset I want to make it clear that lead policy responsibility for the fishing sector rests with the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Furthermore, the atypical work permission scheme established following the 2015 Government Task Force Report on EEA workers in the Irish fishing fleet, is...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Equine Industry (13 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: I am aware that the issue of the classification of stable staff was considered in a recent case before the Labour Court and I presume it is in that context that the deputy is raising the issue.  One issue considered by the Labour Court was whether workers in the equine sector come within the scope of the agriculture...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Sectoral Employment Order: Minister of State at the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation (13 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: I thank the Chairman and all the members who are present. I am pleased to present to the committee for its consideration the draft Sectoral Employment Order (Mechanical Engineering Building Services Contracting Sector) 2018. The draft ministerial order is being made under section 17 of the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2015. The intention is that the order will confirm the rates of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Sectoral Employment Order: Minister of State at the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation (13 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: I have accepted it. I must have strong grounds to reject it and I do not. I respect the work of the Labour Court and its independent identity. This is a voluntary agreement reached by both parties. What we are doing is making legal all of the various increases that have happened in the past 12 months.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Sectoral Employment Order: Minister of State at the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation (13 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: The rates provided for in the draft order amount to 2.5% on the rates that have been paid in line with the voluntary agreement about which I have spoken. It has been in place in the sector since July 2016. The last increase provided for in the voluntary agreement took effect on 1 October 2017. There have been three increases - an increase of 2.4% in July 2016; an increase of 2.5% in the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Sectoral Employment Order: Minister of State at the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation (13 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: I thank the Senator for his comments. I know that he has a strong background in this area. As he pointed out, the agreement is between employers and employees, which means that there is a good relationship between both parties and that more productive work can be done when they consent. I will bear his point about bogus self-employment in mind. I thank him for his comments.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Sectoral Employment Order: Minister of State at the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation (13 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: I thank the Chairman. As usual, she is very positive.

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Workplace Relations Commission (15 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: Inspectors of the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) carry out inspections of employer records with a view to determining compliance with employment rights legislation. These inspections arise: - in response to complaints received of alleged non-compliance with relevant employment rights legislation; - as part of compliance campaigns which focus on compliance in specific...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Workplace Relations Commission (15 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) commissioned the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) to undertake research into the development of new working trends and patterns, including the phenomenon of what is referred to as “gig” work, and into contingent work more generally in the Irish economy. I understand that the objective of the research was to ascertain the...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Equine Industry (20 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: In 2017, the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) initiated a compliance and enforcement campaign within the equine sector generally, including the horse racing industry. Over the course of the year (Phase I) some 74 employers were identified and 73 inspections had been carried out for the purposes of checking compliance with, among other requirements, national minimum wage rates, employment...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: National Minimum Wage (20 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: The Deputy will appreciate that I am not in a position to comment on a national minimum wage compliance scheme operating in another jurisdiction. I should point out that policy responsibility for the social care sector comes within the remit of the Minister for Health who, I understand, has previously commented on the particular issue of overnight workers in the social care sector....

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Workplace Relations Commission (20 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: I want to assure the deputy that my Department works in close co-operation with the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) to ensure that the WRC has sufficient capacity and mechanisms available to it to assist in the effective enforcement of employment law. This builds on the significant reform package put in place in the employment rights enforcement area that was voted through the...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Workplace Relations Commission (20 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: The establishment of the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) created a more streamlined structure for the submission of employment rights and equality complaints. All first instance complaints are now submitted to the WRC, whereas before they could be submitted to the Rights Commissioner Service in the Labour Relations Commission (LRC), the Equality Tribunal, or the Employment Appeals...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Workplace Relations Commission (20 Feb 2018)

Pat Breen: The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC)’s aim is to achieve voluntary compliance with employment law through the provision of education and awareness, inspection of employers’ employment records and enforcement where necessary. While every effort is made to secure compliance, some employers either refuse or fail to rectify the breaches identified and/or pay money due to their...