Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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241. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the provisions being made in the proposed joint labour committees legislation in relation to wage structures for symbol operated stores, shops and supermarkets, for such stores that operate under an umbrella marketing plan yet remain independently owned; his views on whether small store owners operating in such circumstances should not have JLC restrictions imposed upon them; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52882/13]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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The Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2012 provides that reviews of each Joint Labour Committees (JLC) be carried out by the Labour Court, as soon as practicable after the commencement of the Act, and at least once every 5 years thereafter. The review assisted the Labour Court’s deliberations as to whether any JLC should be abolished, maintained in its current form, amalgamated with another JLC or its establishment order amended and the Labour Court is required to make recommendations to the Minister to this effect. On 1 October last, I published the Report of the Labour Court’s Review of the 10 existing JLCs.

In relation to the Retail Grocery JLC, the recommendation from the review was to confine the scope of the retained JLC to those establishments which are defined as multiples and symbol operators within the sector. The review recommended that independent grocery shops, garage shops that do not have symbol shops attached, shops that are fish shops or butchers or cake and bread shops or vegetable shops should not be comprehended by the Retail Grocery JLC in future.

It is important to remember that the JLC Establishment Orders envisaged will provide only a framework within which employers and employee representatives can come together voluntarily and negotiate terms and conditions of workers in their respective sector. For vulnerable workers, the advantage of JLCs is that they see fair terms and conditions such as wage rates, sick pay etc. agreed and given effect by ERO, while for some employers, the advantage of the JLC system, based as it is on the principle of self-governance, means that they can agree and set minimum pay and conditions, agree on work practices which are custom-made to their industry – a flexibility which cannot be achieved by primary legislation. Where both parties to a JLC see commonality of purpose and outcome then an agreement may emerge.

The net effect of changing the scope in the ways recommended is intended to reduce the overall size of the JLC to more closely match the majority share of the competitive grocery market; to extend the scope to cover all of the relevant employees that fall within the remit of the JLC and to make it more flexible and simpler to follow and to enforce. While some shops that are currently covered by the JLC would be excluded, these were not considered by the review to be a significant proportion of the main competitive market of the sector as a whole.

The Office of the Parliamentary Council has been requested to prepare new orders to give effect to the Labour Court recommendations. In addition, I am considering legal advice received from the Attorney General and I hope to deal with this issue and other establishment orders shortly.