Michael Ahern (Cork East, Fianna Fail)

I am particularly pleased to have the opportunity to commence the debate on this important Bill in this House. It is widely acknowledged that social partnership involving employers, employees and Government has been the driving force of change in the workplace over recent years. This social partnership process has been backed up by a well-balanced range of employment rights/labour legislation which, together with measures designed to stimulate employment, provides an appropriate framework for the purpose of achieving an efficient and competitive business environment. Employment rights legislation covering a range of areas such as conditions of employment has an important role to play in promoting labour market stability and minimizing conflict. In keeping with Ireland's voluntarist tradition, collective agreements are, generally, the primary method of determining conditions of employment. The role of statute law has generally been limited to that of setting minimum levels of protection or entitlement.

Ireland has over the past 20 to 30 years been to the forefront in ensuring that reasonable conditions of employment exist which set out clearly for both employers and employees their respective entitlements. Successive Governments have enacted legislation in the area of employment rights reflecting changes in society and the workplace at both national and international levels through, for example, the transposition of EU directives and reflecting in Irish domestic law the standard setting activities of the International Labour Organisation, ILO, and the Council of Europe.

Such legislation has covered a wide range of areas, including minimum notice and terms of employment; protection against unfair dismissal; payment of wages; organisation of working time; safeguarding of employees rights on the transfer of undertakings; protection of young persons at work; safety, health and welfare; redundancy and insolvency entitlements; minimum wage entitlements; and protection of part-time workers