Written answers

Tuesday, 4 October 2011

Department of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation

Employment Rights

8:00 pm

Photo of Michael McGrathMichael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Question 314: To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if he will provide details of any inspections carried out by him or any State bodies into the labour rates paid by construction contractors on major public infrastructure contracts; the level of compliance identified; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27449/11]

Photo of Richard BrutonRichard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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The National Employment Rights Authority (NERA) carries out inspections of employer records with a view to determining compliance with employment rights legislation. These inspections arise:

· in response to complaints received of alleged non-compliance with relevant employment rights legislation;

· as part of NERA inspections focusing on compliance in sectors where there is an identifiable risk of non-compliance, and

· as routine inspections, as part of a control measure.

Contractors working in the construction sector come within the terms of the Registered Employment Agreement for the Construction Industry where they are building or civil engineering undertakings the principal business of which is one or a combination of any of the activities set out in the Agreement. Contractors may also come within the terms of the Registered Employment Agreement for the Electrical Contracting Industry where the main activity of the business is the performance of electrical work on a contract or sub-contract basis for a third party.

The following table provides details of inspections carried out under both Agreements for the period 2010 and 2011 to date.

LegislationCasesCompliance Level %Unpaid Wages Recovered
2010CONSTRUCTION40756%213,297
ELECTRICAL4060%51,946
TOTALS44756%265,243
TO AUGUST 2011CONSTRUCTION31759%200,225
ELECTRICAL3650%17,008
TOTALS35358%217,233

In the course of 2010 NERA established a dedicated team to carry out inspections on major capital public construction projects. These included projects at T2 Dublin Airport, the extension to the M50, the M3 construction, and motorway upgrades such as the M6, M7 and M8. Inspections were also carried out in relation to the Beaumont and St James' Hospital extensions.

The T2 Dublin Airport project involved inspections on approximately 100 companies. The results obtained indicated a high level of compliance with employment rights, with just under 10% of companies not compliant with the pay rates set out in the Registered Employment Agreement. Arrears of unpaid wages totalling €97,358 were recovered for employees as a consequence of the inspections.

NERA also carried out a major investigation into the pay and conditions of the employees of RAC Eire Partnership (a Portuguese employer, employing Portuguese workers) who were working on the high quality dual carriageway from Nenagh to Limerick. The three companies which make up the RAC Eire Partnership were convicted of breaching Section 8(8) (c) of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 by knowingly producing false records. They were each fined €1,000 and have lodged an appeal, due to be heard by the Circuit Court in February 2012.

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