Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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60. To ask the Minister for Trade, Enterprise and Employment if his attention has been drawn to the industrial relations dispute between assisted driving instructors and the Road Safety Authority over the failure to allow the use of toilet and waiting facilities when learner drivers are undertaking their driving test; and if he will engage with the trade union (details supplied) of the instructors in order to find a resolution to this industrial relations matter. [34918/20]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I am aware that a number of Driving instructors recently took part in protests in Dublin and Sligo as a result of the impact of Covid-19 on instructors which restricts access to Road Safety Authority centres while students sit driving tests.

While I understand the inconvenience this causes for individuals, I must emphasise that Ireland’s system of industrial relations is essentially voluntary in nature and that responsibility for the resolution of industrial disputes between employers and workers rests in the first instance with the employer, the workers and their representatives. I would like to reiterate that the WRC is available to any interested parties who may require it. As part of its functions the WRC provides information relating to employment entitlements and obligations, equality and industrial relations matters by means of their telephone service. This service is manned by experienced Information Officers.

Any discussions entered into voluntarily by the workers and employers with one of the State’s industrial relations bodies, the WRC or the Labour Court, are confidential to the parties and I, as Minister, have no role in, or knowledge of, these discussions.

I encourage all sides to make every effort to reach a pragmatic resolution by agreement between companies and workers with the help of the industrial relations machinery of the State.