Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Ryanair is probably one of the best examples of people being allegedly self-employed, even thought they are on very good salaries. It denies revenue to the State and so on. It works its way down through the system. One computer manufacturer in this country had about 6,000 employees, with not one working for the company. Most recently I have heard of builders' labourers being told after four weeks that they are not employees, but are self-employed subcontractors. This was telling a fellow going around with a wheelbarrow that he was self-employed. I know that the Minister's Department and Revenue are very good at following up on complaints about this type of thing but the truth is that they should not have to.

When the likes of Ryanair and computer manufacturers or software testing companies are all at it, it suggests the legal and accountancy professions spend a great deal of time trying to find ways around legislation. I have no doubt that as we are discussing this legislation tonight there are others who have been charged with the job of going through it to find the holes that we have not found and to find ways of circumventing it. Bogus self-employment must be tackled. It is as much a plague on employment as zero-hour contracts. I know the Minister is concerned and that she has acted on any occasion she has been asked, so I am sure we are at one in this instance.