Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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43. To ask the Minister for Health the status of discussions in respect of section 39 workers and those who work with people with disabilities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [61346/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Firstly, I would like to acknowledge the important role that Section 39 organisations and staff play in our health sector.  They have a key role in providing services to people with disabilities and older people.

While the Government does provide assistance, under Section 39 of the Health Act 2004, to organisations that provide services similar or ancillary to services that the HSE may provide, it must be acknowledged that these organisations are privately owned and run and that their terms and conditions of employment, once in line with employment legislation, are strictly between private sector employers and their employees. They were not and are not party to the Public Service Agreements and are therefore not covered by the pay restoration provided for in these Agreements, including Building Momentum.

An agreement was reached at the WRC in October 2018, in relation to a process of pay restoration for staff employed by 50 Section 39 agencies. Pay restoration commenced in April 2019 with an annual pay increase of up to €1,000.  Any outstanding balance was paid in 2020 and 2021. A further WRC engagement followed in December 2020 in relation to a final phase of 250 organisations who were identified as part of the earlier agreement. A payment arrangement consisting of three phases was agreed with the first two payments to be made in 2021, and the third and final payment due to be made in 2023. 

A process along these lines could play a useful role in providing solutions to the current pay related issues that Section 39 organisations have raised.