asked the Minister for Labour the grounds on which AnCO is levying firms in the poultry and egg industry, in view of the provisions of the Agricultural Produce (Eggs) Act, 1939; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Poultry and Egg Industry Levy.
13.
Firms engaged mainly in the processing of poultry and in grading, packing or dealthing, other than by retail, in shell eggs come within the scope of the Industrial Training (Food, Drink and Tobacco) Order, 1969, made by AnCO and are subject to the levy imposed on that industry.
The Agricultural Produce (Eggs) Act, 1939, requires a registered egg wholesaler to employ at least one person skilled in testing, grading and packing of eggs at each registered premises. The provisions of the AnCO levy/grant scheme are directed towards training of staff at all levels within the firms. The two provisions should prove complementary—the first covering certain technical skills needed in the egg wholesaling business and the latter encouraging development and application of training skills to enable all employees to be satisfactorily trained.
Would the Minister not agree that there is a certain amount of duplication here and that either the provisions of the Agricultural Produce (Eggs) Act in relation to skilled workers should be dropped and the training handled completely by AnCO or vice versa, so that AnCO should not be involved in training in which the Department should be involved?
I am informed that both are complementary and are working well together. Departmental provisions require one technician qualified for testing and grading. The training covers the training of all personnel not on the retail side or for primary producers, only on the wholesale side.