Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I support Senator Higgins on amendment No. 6 in relation to the reference that “'student union' means a student union or other student representative body recognised by a higher education provider or by the Minister". I am involved in another area with a representative group which the Minister and the organisation in question have decided they do not want to recognise, yet they were elected by a group within the organisation. That is why amendment No. 8 is the important one and I agree with Senator Norris on that. I do not see how a Minister or institution can ignore a group that was elected by the membership of the student body. I would have huge difficulty if that is in any way enshrined in the legislation. Those two lines enshrine in the legislation that the Minister or higher education provider can turn around and say they do not recognise a given body.

As a trade union representative, I recall sitting in front of a chief executive officer of a vocational education committee, VEC. I went in to make some representations and he looked at me and said he did not recognise the union. We had a long debate on it. As Senator Higgins said, many trade unions have tried to set themselves up in some of the larger companies in this country - some that fly aeroplanes, for example - and the organisation has decided it does not want to recognise them. From that point of view, I support amendments Nos. 6 and 8.

An amendment referred to "priority groups". I have a difficulty with that term because making one group a priority makes another less of a priority.

On precarious employment, one of the most disgusting latent aspects of legislation from Europe was the establishment of employment by the hour in academic institutions, schools and colleges. Highly qualified people being employed for a couple of hours per week is repugnant to any commitment to the organisation. That kicks in to academic freedom, where a lecturer takes a view in the programme he or she is delivering and the academic institution or dean of the faculty does not like it. The lecturer is then gone when the contract comes up for renewal. Whatever happened to the permanent, full-time job?