John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Question 117: To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation his plans to amend the Industrial Relations Act 1990; his views on term workers; the list of occupations not included under this section of the Bill; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14644/11]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Access to the employment dispute settling bodies under the Industrial Relations Acts is governed by the definition of "worker" in Section 23 of the Industrial Relations Act 1990. The following categories of workers are excluded from access to the dispute settling bodies under the provisions of Section 23:

- a person who is employed by or under the State,

- a teacher in a secondary school,

- a teacher in a national school,

- an officer of a vocational education committee, or

- an officer of a school attendance committee

Workers not included within this definition are normally covered by separate schemes of Conciliation and Arbitration.

Section 23(1)(e) of the 1990 Act excludes, inter alia, "an officer of a vocational education committee" from this definition of "worker". Arising from an agreement between management and union sides to abolish the existing Conciliation and Arbitration machinery for vocational educational committee officers and to bring them within the scope of the Industrial Relations Acts, it is proposed to amend the definition of "worker" to include such officers, with the exception of teachers, within the definition of "worker" in the Act. An amendment to this effect was included in the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Bill, 2009, which had not completed its progress through the Dáil before the House was dissolved on 1 February 2011.

The question of an amendment to the Industrial Relations Acts to provide for the inclusion of persons employed in the civil service in the definition of "worker" may arise in future in the context of possible changes in arrangements under the Civil Service Conciliation and Arbitration Scheme. These discussions would be a matter in the first instance for the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.