I propose to take Questions Nos. 183 to 185, inclusive, 188, 189 and 197 together.
My Department received a collective redundancy notification in relation to proposed redundancies at the company in question on 14 August 2009.
Under the Redundancy Payments Scheme administered by my Department and funded from the Social Insurance Fund, the essential function of my Department is to ensure that all eligible employees receive the statutory minimum redundancy entitlements due to them. Currently, the statutory redundancy entitlements for all qualifying employees are two weeks pay per year of service plus a bonus week.
There are two types of redundancy payment made from the Social Insurance Fund — redundancy rebates of 60% which are payable to employers who have paid the minimum statutory redundancy payments to qualifying employees and, statutory lump sums to employees whose employers are insolvent or not in a position to pay. In the case of employers who pay the statutory redundancy payments to their employees, they are entitled, by virtue of their social insurance contributions, to avail of a 60% rebate in respect of the redundancy payments paid out.
Neither the Tánaiste nor I have any role in relation to the negotiation of ex gratia payments to employees in excess of the statutory minimum payments — this is entirely a matter of discretion for the company and an issue for negotiation as between the employees and the company.
In accordance with Sections 9 and 10 of the Protection of Employment Act 1977, companies are required to consult employees' representatives and to supply certain information regarding proposed redundancies. Should it be the case that the level of consultation and information as set down in the Act is not being satisfied, it is possible for a complaint to be taken before the Rights Commissioner Service which will hear the case and communicate the outcome to the parties involved. An appeal can lie from a decision of the Rights Commissioner to the Employment Appeals Tribunal.
Responsibility for the resolution of industrial disputes between employers and workers, whether in redundancy or other collective disputes, rests with the employer, the workers and their representatives. The State provides the industrial relations dispute settlement machinery free of charge to assist this process, which, in line with the general principles of industrial relations in Ireland, is voluntary in nature. The system of industrial relations in Ireland is designed to help and support parties in their efforts to resolve their differences, rather than imposing an extensive set of legislative conditions on the parties to an industrial dispute. It is open to utilise the Industrial Relations mechanism of the state — the Labour Relations Commission and/or the Labour Court to further claims for an enhanced redundancy package.
The Tánaiste and I are very conscious of the loss of employment which will result from the redundancies proposed at the company and would encourage staff and management at the company to engage meaningfully in the process of consultation and to use, where appropriate, the recognized IR mechanisms of the State to come to an agreeable outcome in this case.