Seanad debates

Friday, 26 February 2021

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business

 

10:30 am

Photo of Paul GavanPaul Gavan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I raise the issue of workers in Rehab Enterprises in Raheen, 37 of whom have been told they are going to be made redundant shortly. This is truly concerning because these particular workers suffer from a range of disabilities. Some have visual impairments, some have learning difficulties and some have Down's syndrome. These people have given decades of service to Rehab Enterprises in Limerick. One can imagine the huge blow it is to them to find that their jobs are going but to also find that the long-established and agreed redundancy terms, agreed with their union, SIPTU, which would have at least ensured some degree of financial security, appears to have been tossed aside by Rehab. Rehab has unilaterally decided to cap redundancy at just one year for these workers even though one of these workers has worked there for 40 years and many of them have worked there for decades. There is something truly appalling about this matter. We all know we are going through a difficult time financially, and we know Rehab is also going through a difficult time, but the fact it is going to turn its back on these vulnerable workers who are really going to be challenged to find work anywhere else in the middle of a pandemic is truly shocking.

The fact Rehab will not engage with the Workplace Relations Commission is unforgivable. I am under the impression that Rehab's stance is to say nothing around this, let the 30-day consultation period pass and then just pay off these workers but cap it at a year's earnings. The difference the cap will make to these workers could be as much as €40,000 in redundancy payments. We are talking about vulnerable workers losing their jobs, which will have a huge impact on them, and them being literally short changed by Rehab. That is the only way I can describe it.

I ask the Leader to write to Rehab on behalf of all of us, asking it to engage with the Workplace Relations Commission. All of us should agree that this is the process Rehab should follow. There is an urgency here because these workers are going to run out of time by the middle of March, so we should do all we can to support them and their right to a decent redundancy package.

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