Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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Question 462: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No 188 of 13 June 2012, the reason employees of a company (details supplied) were refused bench marking in 2003; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30934/12]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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In the past, MTL staff benefited from national pay awards for private sector workers negotiated in the context of National Agreements and their pay scales were benchmarked with comparators in the Dairy industry sector. Therefore, benchmarking, as operated in the public sector, did not apply to staff in MTL.

The position of MTL staff changed in 2009 with the introduction of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No 2) Act, 2009. MTL is deemed under this legislation to be a "public service body" by virtue of the fact that they have a public service pension scheme and is, therefore, statutorily prohibited from increasing pay rates.

MTL has been advised that no pay increases will be approved in line with current public service pay policy and having regard to the explicit provisions of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Act 2009. The impact on the financial position of MTL and the future cost on public sector pensions is also relevant.