Vol. 481 No. 7
1 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the current position regarding the National Centre for Partnership; if all the relevant staff have been appointed to date; and if he will give details of the work programme of the centre. [16851/97]
In accordance with the provisions of Partnership 2000, the National Centre for Partnership has now been established with the following board members: Evelyn Owens, chairperson, Peter Cassells, Irish Congress of Trade Unions, John Dunne, Irish Business and Employers Confederation, John Hurley, Department of Finance, Paul Haran, Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, and Mary Doyle, Department of the Taoiseach.
The role of the centre is to foster, directly and indirectly, partnership arrangements, involving the acceptance of employees as stakeholders, which will secure the competitiveness, viability and prosperity of enterprises and the modernisation of public services. Two joint directors have been appointed, together with clerical support. The process of appointing two additional staff is under way.
The first meeting of the board was held on 24 September and the immediate work programme was agreed as follows: (i) the dissemination of "best practice" through the identification and study of those organisations where successful partnership is in operation and where the lessons learned can be promulgated in both the private and public sectors; (ii) the monitoring of developments on partnership, including putting in place a national benchmarking survey and (iii) supporting partnership through training and development, in conjunction with IBEC, ICTU and other relevant organisations. The joint directors are now working to this programme.
In addition, a liaison group, chaired by my Department, is being established with representatives from IBEC, ICTU, the Irish Productivity Centre, the Labour Relations Commission, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the Department of Finance. The role of the liaison group is to act as a communications forum and as a resource for the acquisition and dissemination of information and expertise on partnership and on training to support partnership.
How much money is being provided for the centre?
In 1997, £193,000, and in 1998 £500,000.
Has a definite work programme yet been agreed for the centre over the next two years, or is that a matter that remains to be dealt with?
A work programme has been agreed, although not for a two year period. Based on the section in Partnership 2000, they have set out what they will be involved in over the next year or so. They hope to identify and study what is best practice in the successful areas where this has been used. They will work on everything involved with the liaison committee through the Irish Productivity Council as well as seeing what they can do to bring forward research by ICTU and IBEC.
They have already received many suggestions about how this can be brought forward. The two joint directors have been appointed and two additional staff will be appointed shortly.
Is there any duplication between the activities of this new body and existing bodies? If so, how is that duplication to be reduced?
There probably will be duplication because bodies like the Irish Productivity Centre have been involved in these matters for some time. However, as the Deputy will recall, in the negotiations on Partnership 2000 the view was taken that in trying to establish best practice and develop partnership in the future, it would be best to bring everybody onto the one agenda through this national partnership and to research some of the issues that have been well handled both in Irish industry and elsewhere.
All the organisations involved have people of considerable expertise who are putting their own resources to work with this body. While there may be some duplication, it will not create a difficulty in bringing forward a useful work programme.
Will the Taoiseach indicate the identities of the two directors and the location from which the centre operates? Does the Government intend to make additional finance available to the IPC next year?
Yes, for 1998 we will make available from under £200,000 to £500,000. The directors are Mr. Gerry Grogan, a former president of IBEC, and Mr. John O'Dowd the general secretary of the civil service union. Both have been involved successfully in successive programmes, as the Deputy will be aware. At this stage they are working with the organisations and my own Department to bring matters forward.
What is the location of the centre?
At this stage the directors are using the Department and their own agencies. They will need a permanent base because two higher executive officers will also take up duty shortly.
Is it in-house, here?
Yes, at present, but they will have a permanent base.
Has the Taoiseach given any consideration as to how best practice models will be rolled out into Irish industry so that, moving on from research, companies that heretofore have not had partnership arrangements will adopt some form of partnership? In the context of the Finance Bills specifically, is the Government considering either promoting employee share option schemes or employee profit sharing arrangements through tax measures?
In so far as their work programme is developed, the idea is that they will use the National Centre for Partnership in the first instance for the period of Partnership 2000. They will promote involvement, monitor developments, gather research and use the partnership groupings — the four pillars of Partnership 2000 — to send out their best practises, mainly from the Congress of Trade Unions, IBEC and the Chambers of Commerce of Ireland.
Some organisations have spent resources over the years. The social partners would argue that not enough has been spent. However, the best practises can be developed by them. In addition, the two directors and the staff through Partnership 2000 can send out what they believe are the models that should be developed into the future. That would prove to be a useful way of doing things.
Will the Government put resources into rolling out these models, either through the use of tax vehicles that would make them easier to adopt or through any other methods it may decide to support?
In the spirit of Partnership 2000, and the detailed section which the agreement contains on these issues, it behoves the Government to look at whatever suggestions are brought forward. Suggestions have already been made regarding shares in companies and other measures would be legislated for under successive tax Bills. Doubtless, new ideas will come forward and some of the best practises in the State at present will be included in the National Centre for Partnership. The Government will support these.
What about tax relief?
IBEC is opposed to trade union recognition. If the director of IBEC, Mr. John Dunne, is also director of the board of The National Centre for Partnership, how does the Taoiseach reconcile this, given that one of the purposes of the centre is to recommend trade union recognition?
The director of IBEC, Mr. John Dunne, is also the director of the board of the National Partnership Centre. However, Mr. Dunne has worked on all of the agreements, apart from one, in that position. A working group is examining the issue of trade union recognition. The issues of partnership developed over some of those years must be further developed into the workplace. The concept of worker participation at shop floor and office level has long been discussed.
It is difficult to have partners if their existence is not recognised.
The issue at difference between the two groups is subject to discussion between them. I hope they can reach a conclusion. However, it is not one that is directed at the large enterprises. It arises often in some of the unorganised and smaller parts of Irish labour. It can be resolved. If the major multinationals were involved the difficulties would be clearer.
IBM is not a small corner shop.
It is not one of the big ones. With regard to Deputy John Bruton's question on tax, some proposals have been made, especially with regard to relief and shares. The social partners are again raising the issues of how workers in companies can have an opportunity to gain access to company shares and, in the process, gain tax relief. This issue is worth examining.
