Gareth Scahill (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House. The Protection of Retail Workers Bill 2025 is a timely and necessary step in acknowledging the challenges retail workers face and offering them real enforcement protection. I therefore commend the Senators on bringing forward the Bill.

Retail workers are the visible face of commerce in every community, from corner shops to petrol stations, local supermarkets and family run stores. However, in rural Ireland these workers are often the same people who run the business. The role is not only about service. It is about community. When we talk about protecting retail workers we must also speak about protecting retail businesses because the two cannot be separated. That is especially true in small towns and villages across the west of Ireland where a single business might employ half a dozen people and keep the heart of the community alive. Retail crime and abuse are on the rise. From theft and threats to verbal abuse and harassment, workers are facing growing hostility. This Bill rightly recognises that retail work should not come with daily risk.

There is also another threat that is less visible but just as damaging to businesses and this Bill must help us to begin us to address it. It is retail defamation. Retail defamation refers to false, harmful and often public accusations made against businesses, which can be severely damaging to reputations, customer trust and staff morale. I mentioned in the House previously that I heard from retail businesses recently that they do not follow people they suspect of stealing from their businesses, mainly because the likelihood of a conviction is low, but also because they open themselves up to a defamation case for accusing someone. If someone has a history of stealing, they should not have a character to protect. We owe it to the businesses to protect the businesses in that situation.

In a rural town where every customer counts, one defamation post on social media can be catastrophic. It can deter customers, spark rumours and undo years of honest hard work overnight. I have spoken to business owners who have to defend themselves online against false claims without the time, resources or legal advice to do so effectively. It many cases it is a battle they are forced to fight alone. This needs to change. If we are serious about supporting retail workers and businesses, especially in rural Ireland, we must take a broader view of protection which also includes protection from defamation and digital abuse. This Bill opens the door to that conversation so I propose we use this opportunity to push for recognition that retail defamation is a form of abuse, especially when it targets individual shops or staff through online platforms. A support system for small businesses, including quick response mechanisms for dealing with false accusations and access to legal guidance or mediation services is needed. In rural Ireland, the local shop is not just where we buy bread and milk, as some of my colleagues have said. It is where we meet our neighbours, post letters, get prescriptions and hear the latest news. These businesses are anchors in towns that are already fighting depopulation, infrastructure issues and rising costs. When they are attacked, physically or reputationally, it affects everyone. This Bill, while focused on worker protection, must be seen as part of a wider effort to defend the entire rural retail ecosystem. Let us send a message that abuse and false accusations, whether in-store or online, have no place in our communities. Let us back our shopkeepers, staff and small businesses not just with words but with legislation, and give them the tools to respond, rebuild and continue to serve. To every business owner, especially in the west of Ireland, working long hours to keep their doors open, and to every retail worker who stands behind a counter facing the public each day, you deserve respect, security and protection. The Protection of Retail Workers Bill 2025 is a critical start. Let us not just stop at physical abuse. Let us include reputation, dignity and fairness in that conversation, especially for rural businesses that are too open and left to fight this battle on their own.

On what Senator Andrews said about the previous Minister, today is about protecting retail workers' rights. Let us pass this Bill today and push it through the House. Let us not use it as an opportunity to gain bonus points.