Liam Twomey (Fine Gael)

I am sure the Minister of State is well aware of many of the regulations and complications that exist in the labour market at present, as this is his area of responsibility. Much concern has been expressed to him about various regulations, about the National Employment Rights Authority, NERA, and the complications they cause for employers. Much of this is very useful but I have had considerable representation from companies who say that even the most minor infringements on rotas and payments can create a huge amount of administrative hassle within a company. They feel it is much easier for companies which are not as rigid in their processes.

When looking at the issue of the minimum wage in particular, we must do so from the point of view of existing workers and the potential to create jobs. Where do the people on the minimum wage work? Essentially they work in retail and in the entertainment industry. They are the big sectors in which one finds people on the minimum wage, where people come in and out quite a lot. Other concerns have also been expressed to the Minister of State from within these sectors, such as with regard to double time and the huge cost to employers of taking on casual staff for weekends, which is when the retail and entertainment sectors operate mainly. They find their cost base is very high. There do not seem to be any solutions coming from the Government to deal with these issues. Removing €1 from the minimum wage has cut the income of those on it. Other taxation and social charges will also hit these people quite hard. A different approach could have been taken by the Government to help improve the efficiency of these industries, make it easier for employers to take on people and help them to control their costs while at the same time not penalising the very lowest paid workers in the sector.