Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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798. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will take steps to ensure that a construction company which has a number of school building contracts (details supplied) will ensure all subcontractors it employs pay all outstanding unpaid wages. [1078/16]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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A building project is a complex arrangement of contractual relationships between the client, the main contractor, specialist sub-contractors, domestic sub-contractors, suppliers of materials, suppliers of plant etc. In general all sub-contractors employed on education sector building projects are employed directly by the Main Contractor or indirectly by the Main Contractor through other sub-contractors. It is a matter for all sub-contractors to agree terms and conditions and a schedule of payments with the Main Contractor as their direct employer.

The specific issue outlined in the details provided by the Deputy involves a contractual matter between two private companies. As such my Department has no authority to intervene in this matter.

You will be aware of the commitment in the Programme for Government 2011-2016 to "introduce new legislation to protect all small building subcontractors that have been denied payments from bigger companies". In this regard the Construction Contracts Act 2013 is intended to provide statutory arrangements for payments under construction contracts. The Act, when commenced, will then provide certain protections for companies and individuals, including sub-contractors, engaged in construction related activities who enter into construction contracts covered by the Act. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform is the lead Department in respect of this legislation.