Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 309: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of calls from workers received by the employment rights information unit phone service in 2005 and in each of the previous five years. [13135/06]

Tony Killeen (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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The employment rights information unit does not keep figures on the number of calls received specifically from workers. The number of phone inquiries received during 2005 was 122,283 and the figures for the previous five years are set out in the following tabular statement.

Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 310: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of queries from workers received by the employment rights information unit e-mail service in 2005 and in each of the previous five years. [13136/06]

Tony Killeen (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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The employment rights information unit does not keep figures on the number of e-mail queries received specifically from workers. The number of e-mail inquiries received during 2005 was 3,037 and the figures for the previous five years are set out in the following tabular statement.

Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 311: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of one-to-one interviews with workers which were carried out by the employment rights information unit in 2005 and in each of the previous five years. [13137/06]

Tony Killeen (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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The employment rights information unit does not keep figures on the number of one-to-one interviews with those who are specifically workers. The overall number of one-to-one interviews carried out during 2005 was 887 and the figures for the previous five years are set out in the following tabular statement.

Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 312: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of employees who staff the telephone service or helpline operated by the employment rights information unit; if these employees have duties other than staffing this helpline; and if so, what these other duties are. [13138/06]

Tony Killeen (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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The current number of posts in the employment rights information unit of the Department stands at 14, broken down as follows: one higher executive officer, one executive officer and 12 clerical officers. There is currently one clerical officer vacancy.

The employment rights information unit, ERIU, in addition to staffing the telephone service produces a range of materials, for example, information leaflets and booklets that provide a condensed and simplified version of the large corpus of employment rights legislation that is currently on the Statute Book. With particular regard for the needs of non-national employees the Department has translated key employment rights information into nine languages and made this available in leaflet form and on the Department's website. The unit distributes thousands of information leaflets and booklets to citizen information centres and post offices etc. around the country.

The ERIU responds to messages left on the out of business hours phone service, does one-to-one interviews in privacy with personal callers, provides written replies to correspondence, parliamentary questions etc., responds to the electronic mail service, attends exhibitions, seminars, schools etc. to explain entitlements and distributes explanatory materials on a range of employment legislation.