Vol. 502 No. 4
14 Mr. McDowell asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the Government's position on the directive proposed by EU Commissioner Flynn which would require companies to consult more widely with their staff, particularly in view of the fact that Ireland has no comprehensive worker consultation rules on its statute books; if Ireland will be supporting the proposed directive; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8322/99]
A Commission proposal for a Council directive establishing a general framework for informing and consulting employees in the European Community was published in November of last year but has not been placed on the agenda for the Social Affairs Council. It is at the discretion of the Presidency of the day to set the agenda for discussions by the Council.
In Ireland a wide range of statutory provisions for information and consultation is already in place, which addresses areas of vital interest to employees. These provisions include: the Protection of Employment Act, 1977 (as amended by the Protection of Employment Order, 1996); covering collective redundancies; European Communities (Safeguarding of Employees' Rights on Transfer of Undertakings) Regulations, 1980; certain provisions of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act, 1989; Transnational Information and Consultation of Employees Act, 1996, which applies to large-scale multi-nationals and particular terms of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997.
Partnership 2000 includes commitments by the social partners and the Government to the development of partnership at the enterprise level. These include the advancement of information and consultation in the workplace. Many Irish based enterprises are developing employee information and consultation as part of a competitive strategy, which recognises the role and value of employees in business development.
I question the need for such a directive at this time. However, the social partners will be consulted and the text of the directive is being examined in preparation for the beginning of the consultation process.
