Results 1,261-1,280 of 2,815 for speaker:Tony Killeen

Written Answers — Skills Strategy: Skills Strategy (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: The Government is fully committed to investing in the upskilling of the Irish labour force. That is why this year this Department will invest nearly €480 million in training programmes operated by FAS, Skillnets and others organisations. Out of this sum €280 million will be allocated to training programmes to prepare people to enter employment. A further €70 million is being...

Written Answers — Redundancy Payments: Redundancy Payments (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: Payment of Statutory Redundancy is, in the first instance, the responsibility of the employer. When a redundancy situation arises in an employment, an employer must give at least 2 weeks notice of termination of the employment in accordance with the provisions of the Redundancy Payments Acts 1967 to 2003. On the date of termination or as close to possible to it, the employer should pay the...

Public Holidays. (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: The Organisation of Working Time Act 1997, which implemented EU Council Directive 93/104/EC, of 23 November 1993, concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time, provides for an entitlement to nine public holidays per annum. Publication of data by the European Employment Observatory shows a wide variation in the number of public holidays among EU member states. The average...

Public Holidays. (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: I will not engage in prophecy at this stage but it is important to remember the context of the league table of public holidays. I find league tables in general to be quite misleading, and this table does not take account of the holiday entitlements of people, which are in many respects considerably more flexible than set public holidays, as long as people have the choice of when to take...

Public Holidays. (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: I am afraid Deputy Quinn is setting the bar somewhat high with his requirements for the next public holiday, whenever it is announced. There are benefits to having public holidays, although families would indicate that public holiday weekends tend to be the most expensive in many of these locations. For many ordinary working families, the flexibility which entitlements to ordinary leave...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: Like Deputy Quinn, I was not present when this element was discussed, but Deputies on all sides will remember the discussion during the dispute that gave rise to this legislation and know of the income tax relief difficulties that might arise for employees who become redundant. A safeguard to the benefit of workers would be lost were the provision changed.

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: I move amendment No. 23: In page 12, line 20, after "payment" to insert "by the employer". This is a technical amendment to section 9(3)(a) of the Bill, which provides for a substitute provision for section 7(1)(c) of the Unfair Dismissals Act 1977 relating to enhanced compensation, in which an employee takes a successful unfair dismissals case following the issuing of a Labour Court opinion...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: Like Members on all sides of the House, I am familiar with the Castlemahon and Comerama cases. While the principles in those cases are somewhat different, I do not doubt that the effect of the cases, as Deputies Quinn, Hogan and Neville have suggested, has been to undermine people's confidence in the redundancy process somewhat. Many people have expressed their disagreement with the process...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: I am familiar with the example that was cited by Deputy Neville in the Castlemahon case. Those affected in that instance have a huge sense of injustice. Workers who are affected by restructuring have to face real questions, as Deputy Quinn mentioned. Such cases arise quite frequently. People make decisions on the basis of their family circumstances and their belief in their capacity to...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: There is nothing to chase in such circumstances. In many instances, workers are equally at a disadvantage because they are unable to negotiate more than the statutory level. There is a strong argument, in many respects, for directing a great deal of attention at the level of actual statutory redundancy. It is worth trying to devise a formula to apply to cases like Comerama and Castlemahon....

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: The Comerama workers have left me in no doubt that they believe they made their decisions on foot of a particular outcome which ultimately could not be delivered. They believe they would not have made that decision if they were not in a position in which they had to make it on that basis. Many of the Castlemahon workers believe that if they had been given information that was made available...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: Deputy Quinn highlighted one of the key decisions that will have to be made by my successor in this office. He or she will have to decide whether to consolidate the existing legislation, or to incorporate in the consolidating legislation two or three Bills that are promised in Towards 2016 and relate to issues of this nature which are crying out to be addressed in a much more proactive and...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: The proposed fine of €250,000 is a 20-fold increase on the previous one. An employer who falls foul of this legislation will have to contend with many other monetary problems. For example, the employees will be likely to receive payments of up to five years' salary. That provision will impose a huge monetary penalty. In view of our discussion on section 9, I believe payments made by an...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: It is important to remember that the increased fine would be imposed in the case of a collective redundancy where the dismissals occur before the expiry of the 30-day period. That may not be the most important issue. There are very good reasons, separate from the fine, that an employer should go beyond that period in any event. The increase in the fine is substantial. Even in cases such...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: I move amendment No. 26: In page 14, line 38, after "State," to insert the following: "(except where the employer has an existing operation with established terms and conditions)". The amendment will facilitate a company with established operations in different locations which may need to restructure, to move part of its operation to another existing location within the country and with...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: That would not be the case. The difficulty that would arise if we did not have this provision is that companies would find themselves unable to restructure in Ireland, effectively being forced abroad. In the case of the employees cited in the Deputy's example, it would leave them worse off as they would have no alternative to redundancy. It was never intended that exceptional collective...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: I move amendment No. 27: In page 18, to delete line 5 and substitute the following: ""(2A) Without prejudice to the applicability of any of the provisions of section 6 to the case, where——". This amendment provides that, to avoid doubt, the applicability of the provisions of section 6 of the Unfair Dismissals Act 1977 to the type of dismissal described in the new section 5(2A) of that Act...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: I move amendment No. 28: In page 18, to delete lines 14 to 16 and substitute the following: "in determining whether, in those circumstances, the dismissal is an unfair dismissal, the rights commissioner, the Tribunal or the Circuit Court, as the case may be, shall have regard, for that purpose only, to—". This covers a somewhat similar situation. The amendment clarifies that the specific...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle and the Members opposite for co-operating with this legislation. I pay tribute to the social partners for the work they put in. Some very important points were raised. The issue brought up by Deputy Morgan regarding the level of penalties will undoubtedly be addressed in the forthcoming employment rights legislation and a whole raft of legislation to which...

Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Committee and Remaining Stages (26 Apr 2007)

Tony Killeen: The Parliamentary Counsel suggested the existing Title at drafting stage. The main purpose of the Bill is to deal with exceptional collective redundancies. The Protection of Employment Act 1977 covers collective redundancy situations involving specific numbers of workers. However, the Bill makes new provisions, including the establishment of the redundancy panel, and as such is not just...