Ollie Crowe (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy English, to the House. Fianna Fáil will support the Government amendment to the motion. We accept that neither the current regime for sick leave nor the parental leave system was designed for the current pandemic. Although there is no legal right to sick pay from an employer, employees who are not entitled to sick pay from their employer may be able to avail of illness benefit from the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection. Collective bargaining has achieved sick leave safety nets for many workers, but such agreements are not equally prevalent across all sectors. In such circumstances, it is right that supports be reviewed, as has already been agreed.

We are keenly aware that many businesses are struggling to keep their doors open. That is certainly the case in Galway city and beyond. All Senators are aware of the impact of the ongoing pandemic on many industries, including hospitality, tourism, the events industry, international travel, transport providers and many more. Changes which could result in additional costs for businesses need to be developed in careful consultation with those businesses and unions. There may also be a cost to the State involved. The proposed timeline will allow that important engagement to take place. As the Taoiseach has stated, issues around access to sick pay are very important and the Government must start working towards a sustainable sick pay regime. The consultation will be completed as soon as possible.

The motion follows on from the Sick Leave and Parental Leave (Covid-19) Bill 2020 which was recently debated in the Dáil. Although it did not oppose the Bill, the Government brought forward an amendment which proposed that the Bill would be deemed to have been read a second time in six months' time to allow consultation in the meantime by the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection and the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation with unions and employers on the issues likely to arise from the Bill. The Government has committed to completing that consultation as soon as possible. As has been outlined, there is no legal right to be paid sick leave, but illness benefit is available. Employers may decide their own policy on sick leave whether to provide payment while employees are off work sick.

Section 2 of the recent Sick Leave and Parental Leave (Covid-19) Bill 2020 provides for paid sick leave at the normal rate of pay after the first four weeks of employment for a period of six continuous weeks or a total of 30 days in any 12-month period. As drafted, this would place an onus on employers to provide all of this pay. Section 3 provides for an unlimited period of force majeureleave, as outlined by Senator Sherlock, for a parent or guardian who must care for a child who is sick or where there is a Covid-19 related closure of a school or preschool. Section 4 provides for protections to ensure that employers are not disadvantaged by elements of the Bill, that collective agreements are recognised, and that more generous arrangements are protected. Section 5 provides for recourse to the Workplace Relations Commission where a complaint arises, similar to the process relating to complaints regarding a worker's entitlement to annual leave. Section 6 provides that nothing within the Bill amends the law relating to grounds that would justify the dismissal of an employee.The Labour Party proposals would place responsibility on employers to provide six weeks' paid leave. Such a responsibility, while welcome for employees, could potentially be onerous for employers. It could be particularly severe for small businesses, SMEs and businesses in which there is a large outbreak of Covid-19. While the spirit of the Labour Party motion is not opposed, it is vital that employers and unions are given an opportunity to give input to any forthcoming legislation, ensure that it is workable and that jobs generated by employers are not put under pressure by increased costs.

When a worker is told to self-isolate by a doctor or the HSE due to being a probable source of infection or has been diagnosed with Covid-19 by a doctor, he or she can apply for the illness benefit payment per week. I urge the Government to increase that payment back to €350 which was previously in place.

All employees other than some public sector employees who pay a modified rate of social insurance and self-employed people, including non-nationals and people living in direct provision, are entitled to claim and receive Covid-19 illness benefit where conditions are met.

In response to the current need for Covid-19 supports for parents, the Government is examining the possibility of extending parental leave and benefit from two weeks to five weeks for each parent and extending the period in which this leave can be taken. Each parent is now entitled to 26 weeks of parental leave. The Government proposal would mean that eligible parents of the children born during the pandemic crisis will get an extra three weeks' parental leave to offset the impact of having a child during the strict lockdown measures. The period in which parental leave can be taken will also be extended from one year to two years. This, and the related costs, will be considered as part of the budget next Tuesday. The support is paid at a rate of €245 per week by the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection.

There are other areas in which the Government has requested employers to be as flexible as possible. It has put pressure on them to allow staff to take time off after their children are born during the pandemic. Some of the flexible options include: offering paid compensatory leave; allowing employees to work from home; alternating shifts so that employees can co-ordinate caring between themselves and their partners or another person; allowing employees to rearrange holidays; and allowing them to take paid time off that can later be worked back. Where it is possible to make appropriate compassionate leave arrangements, employees may be able to call on some statutory entitlements, including parental leave together with parental benefit, or carer's leave together with carer's benefit or allowance. Under the proposals in the Labour Party Bill, a new statutory entitlement to six weeks' paid sick leave would have to be created.