Dominic Hannigan (Labour)

I worry therefore when the Taoiseach says he will introduce two Bills. If we saw one of them it might be a way forward, but I worry about the timescales. Towards 2016 made no progress on the issue of protecting agency workers. We can see this when it comes to things like rates of pay. Temporary workers are paid two thirds the rate of full-time workers who are doing more or less the same job. Not only is this discriminating against temporary workers, it is also bad for full-time employees. During the general election campaign I came across a man in Duleek who found it difficult to get a full-time job because he was being undercut by temporary workers seeking employment. It is not just about protecting the rights of temporary workers, therefore, it also concerns the effect it has on full-time employees. There is no doubt that exploitation is happening. Recently I read about a person who sued their agency and received over €100,000 in compensation for years of serious underpayment.

The World Economic Forum says Ireland is lingering at No. 41 of 130 countries as regards the equality of distribution of rates of pay. A recent OECD survey found that Ireland has one of the top ten least protected labour markets, but nothing has been done to change that. Our failure to implement this directive has made things even worse than most other European countries. As Senator Kelly said, temporary workers should have employment rights. We cannot continue to grow our knowledge-based economy unless such protections are in place to prevent a cheap and unregulated supply of labour.

Our Bill calls for such things as a balance of rights between temporary staff and full-time, permanent workers. It sets down a maximum amount of time before which a temporary worker becomes employed directly by the employer. It also allows temporary workers to organise a union. The Bill demands that insurance is put in place so that if a temporary agency goes out of business the temporary worker's pay will be protected. These protective measures are nothing more or less than basic working rights. It is time to help these workers and, if enacted, the Bill would put the employment of temporary workers on a fair footing.

The Government's inaction on this matter is reprehensible. In addition, its refusal to allow the introduction of the EU directive is indefensible. If the Government is serious about protecting our workforce, temporary and permanent, it should support this Bill.