Sarah O'Reilly (Aontú)

I want to raise an issue that is happening under our noses. There are many cogs in the machine that make the Houses of the Oireachtas run smoothly and, unfortunately, some of the people who play a key role in here are being treated incredibly unfairly. Cleaners, sound technicians and broadcasting staff are privately contracted, which means that when the Seanad and the Dáil are not sitting, these individuals have no work and are not paid. Committee technicians have been left unpaid since 8 November, the date the general election was called.

Our broadcasting staff are crucial for the very fabric of democracy. In fact, the ability to have the proceedings here broadcast means that every single person across the country can access the discussions, debates and legislating that happens in Leinster House. The broadcasting staff are hired by a private contractor that receives €7.5 million over a period of five years to roster staff. All the cameras and other equipment belong to the Oireachtas. Not only are people being subjected to unfair work conditions, but it is costing the Oireachtas, and therefore the taxpayer, more money to employ these workers through a private contract than it would to employ them directly. It is very frustrating to see that the Oireachtas has money to waste on bike sheds, security huts and touchscreen landlines while the people working here are left to scrape by on low-hour contracts. Many people in these positions have to work additional jobs or claim unemployment benefits just to get by. We have a duty of care to ensure that all workers are treated fairly. There is no point in our standing up and delivering grand speeches on the importance of workers' rights when there are people working hard only a few rooms over trying to get by on €12,000 per year. Will the Government reform this system and employ them publicly?