It is expected of an Opposition spokesman to make comments on a Bill that has created widespread interest. Since I became spokesman for my party I have never had so many submissions from so many interested groups. This is good because it shows an interest in a much-needed Bill, a Bill which we hope will contribute to better human and industrial relations between the employer and the employee.
Fears were expressed about the harmful effects so many anti-discrimination Bills might have at a time of high unemployment. Bills of this nature should and must be introduced. Because of worth-while discussions from both sides on Committee Stage there have been a number of changes since this Bill was introduced and I am satisfied this is a much better Bill, although there is still room for improvement.
I am sure Senators will go through the sections in detail to see where there is room for improvement. I should like to bring section 2 (3) (a) to the Minister's attention. In the January edition of the Dock and Harbour Authority magazine Mr. F. Thomas Poole in the "Legal Notes", referring to the residence of a person or a person being domiciled in this State, said:
The law on Unfair Dismissal as it affects employees who work partly in Great Britain and partly abroad should be amended to take account of the difficulties likely to arise from the development of the EEC, the growth of international companies and the expansion of motor transport.
It goes on to say that because more and more time is being spent by people working either on international haulage or with multi-national companies in European countries, in the opinion of the writer decisions were made by the tribunal that could be regarded as unfair to the individuals involved. For that reason I ask the Minister to look at that section again. As I said on Committee Stage, "domiciled" can have a wide usage, can be used in many different ways from a legal point of view and could leave open an avenue that would not be desirable. Since we became members of the EEC we have become more involved with Europe and there is the possibility of more companies working in this country and of our people working abroad. For that reason this section should be looked at very closely.
I must again express my disappointment that the amendment dealing with paramedical people was not accepted, because I consider that there is a certain amount of discrimination here. I strongly urge the Minister, even at this stage and despite the decision taken here today, to look at this again between now and when the Bill is introduced in the Seanad. It must be remembered that this is an Unfair Dismissals Bill. I do not think a case can be made for an unfair dismissal to take place in this area which involves people who are so useful.
This Bill has the support of this Party. I am satisfied the amendments improved it. As I said, I would have preferred to see more amendments accepted, but no doubt the Seanad will do something about that. I wish the Bill a speedy passage through the Seanad. Were it not for the fact that we have to take another Bill this afternoon, I would make a more lengthy speech on this.
