Written Answers Nos. 33-41
33. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if her attention has been drawn to the fact that a company (details supplied) is in receipt of numerous public contracts paid by the State in addition to a contract with a bank (details supplied) and is now planning to lay off 65 workers at its Dublin base and move these jobs abroad; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14456/17]
View answer38. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if she has had contact with a company (details supplied) that is planning 65 redundancies to its workforce in order to move part of its profitable operations to other countries; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14455/17]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 33 and 38 together.
Arising from its obligations under the Protection of Employment Act 1977, the company in question wrote to me on 7th February 2017 to give notice of pending collective redundancies in its employment.
Under their governing legislation, the enterprise development agencies under the remit of my Department are precluded from providing grant support to companies that operate exclusively in the area of sales and distribution. In this context, the company in question is not a client of any of the enterprise development agencies.
The proposed job losses will be a significant blow to the employees involved and their families. My Department remains focused on creating the most competitive environment for enterprise to succeed so that we can achieve our goal of sustainable employment for all. Working with our enterprise agencies and with colleagues across Government, we are committed to delivering a range of actions outlined in our National and Regional Action Plans for Jobs to ensure that quality and sustainable jobs continue to be created throughout all regions of the country.
34. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation her specific plans to minimise the impact of Brexit in County Donegal; and the engagement she has had with IDA Ireland to ensure it secures new investment in County Donegal in view of Brexit. [14421/17]
View answerEnterprise Ireland (EI), the Local Enterprise Offices and IDA Ireland are engaging on an ongoing basis with all client companies regarding the impacts being felt as a result of Brexit. They have clear plans in place to mitigate challenges and maximise opportunities arising from the UK decision.
In Budget 2017, I secured additional monies, both current and capital, to support the enterprise agencies’ strategic response to Brexit.
I have a particular focus on the trade implications for the border region and am heavily engaged with all stakeholders in the Region on an ongoing basis.
InterTrade Ireland also has a programme of initiatives to deal with the practical consequences of Brexit for cross-border trade.
The Regional Action Plan for the North East/North West, which has a strong Brexit focus, aims to support 28,000 new jobs across Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim, Cavan, Monaghan, and Louth by 2020. There is strong progress to date, with 5,600 more people in employment across the region since the start of 2015.
Brexit is a standing item on the Regional Action Plan for Jobs implementation meetings.
35. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation her plans to ensure there is no disruption to the current HGV driver sector in anticipation of Brexit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14426/17]
View answer36. Deputy Declan Breathnach asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if her attention has been drawn to the potential damage to the economy caused by the unavailability of drivers in the HGV sector across the EU; the action being taken to ensure drivers can be recruited outside of the EU while unavailable within the EU; if her attention has been further drawn to the fact that there is a severe shortage of HGV drivers in the EU; if she will consider putting the category of HGV driver on the highly skilled eligible occupations list to allow the employment permits system to operate in the sector; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14425/17]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 35 and 36 together.
Research undertaken by the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGFSN) does indicate issues regarding recruitment of HGV drivers. Meeting the demand for these drivers requires an integrated approach primarily involving labour market activation and upskilling/training. As part of that approach, the employment permits regime offers only a short-term solution where genuine skills shortages exist.
The EGFSN recommended, as a priority, that a HGV Driver apprenticeship be developed to help address the demand for HGV drivers with the required licence. Engagement between industry representatives and education and training providers is a crucial factor in ensuring that skills needs of particular sectors are met.
Employment permit policy is part of the response to addressing skills deficits which exist and are likely to continue into the short and medium term. It is not intended over the longer term to act as a substitute for meeting the challenge of up-skilling our resident workforce. Where a shortage exists, changes may be made to the lists which determine the eligibility of occupations for employment permits.
Changes to access to the Irish Labour Market for specific occupations vis the employment permits system are made on the basis of research undertaken by the EGFSN in tandem with a consultation process in which submissions are sought from stakeholders on the appropriateness of the lists during the bi-annual review process. A review of the eligible listings is being finalised at present; the situation in relation to HGV drivers is under consideration as part of this review. It is expected that the outcome of this review will be available within the next few weeks.
Both the Irish and British Governments have indicated their strong desire to maintain operation of the Common Travel Area following the UK's withdrawal from the EU.
37. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the reason the Workplace Relations Commission labour inspectorate is seeking legal advice on the implementation of the atypical worker permit scheme for migrants working on Irish fishing vessels; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [12375/17]
View answerArising from the recommendations of the Task Force on allegations regarding treatment of workers on Irish fishing trawlers, an atypical work permission scheme was introduced for non-EEA fishermen working on Irish fishing vessels.
The scheme is administered by the Department of Justice and Equality and the Irish National Immigration Service (INIS) on behalf of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. A number of agencies and organisations are involved in the monitoring and enforcement of the scheme and have signed up to a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in order to provide a rigorous and effective inspection system. They include An Garda Síochána, Bord Iascaigh Mhara, INIS, the Naval Service, the Revenue Commissioners, the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority, my Department, including the Workplace Relations Commission and the Health and Safety Authority, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and, with a number of exclusions, the Marine Survey Office of the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport.
The WRC is an independent statutory body set up by the Workplace Relations Act 2015 and the Labour Inspectorate Division of the WRC has responsibilities that relate to the enforcement of the Employment Permits Acts and employment rights legislation. I, as Minister, have no function in the day to day operations of the WRC and while the WRC may seek external legal opinion on operational matters from time to time I am not privy to these matters.
Notwithstanding this, I am informed that in relation to the atypical work permission scheme, no legal advice has been sought by the WRC.
40. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation her views on the discrepancy between County Wexford's unemployment rate of 18.5% and the rate for the south-east region as a whole, which has fallen to 9.4%; the measures she is taking to bridge this gap and bring more job opportunities to County Wexford specifically; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14428/17]
View answerThe official rate of employment and unemployment in the state is measured by the CSO’s Quarterly National Household Survey (QNHS) and unemployment rates are published at regional level only. In the South East region, which includes Wexford, the current (Q4 2016) unemployment rate is 9.4%.
The only unemployment data available at county level is the CSO’s monthly Live Register, which may be the figure referred to by the Deputy. However, this is not designed to measure unemployment, as it includes part-time workers (those who work up to three days per week) and seasonal and casual workers entitled to Jobseekers' Benefit and Jobseekers' Allowance.
The latest Live Register figures show that the numbers on the Register in County Wexford have fallen by almost 1,800 in the past year.
The key policy response for supporting employment growth in the South East region, including Wexford, is the South East Action Plan for Jobs, which involves public and private stakeholders actively engaged in delivering a range of innovative and practical actions set out in the Plan.
The core objective of the Plan is to see a further 25,000 at work in the region by 2020 and to reduce the unemployment rate to within 1% of the State average.
The first progress report on the implementation of the Action Plan was published last December and shows that good progress was made in implementing the Plan, with a 92% implementation rate for actions to be reported on.
As a result of a focused collaborative approach and a range of reforms delivered in the region over recent years, the unemployment rate in the South East has fallen from a peak of 20.1% in 2012 to the current rate of 9.4%.
215,000 people are now at work in the South East.
This represents a net increase of almost 13,000 jobs in the region since Q1 2015. That is over half of our target of 25,000 additional jobs in the region by 2020.
The enterprise agencies are working extremely hard towards the ambitious targets set out in the South East Regional Action Plan.
Enterprise Ireland companies currently support 20,450 jobs in the South East region, 4,816 of which are based in Wexford. This is an increase of 2,140 since end-2014 for the region, and an increase of 332 for Wexford.
Wexford LEO has supported gross job gains in 2016 of 197 in its client companies. Total employment among LEO Wexford clients was 1,192 at the end of last year.
Wexford is home to 17 existing IDA Ireland clients who between them employ almost 2,630 people in a range of manufacturing and service operations. Since end 2014, IDA-supported companies have seen a net increase of 127 jobs in Wexford.
My Department is providing additional funds through the agencies out to 2020. Together with Enterprise Ireland, I am currently finalising plans for a regional initiative of up to €60m to support collaborative approaches to grow and sustain jobs across the regions, and to encourage each county to reach its full potential.
41. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the reason no prosecutions have followed from the 151 infringements against the rights of migrant fishing crew that have been uncovered in the industry (details supplied). [12376/17]
View answerThe Workplace Relations Commission's objective is to facilitate voluntary compliance insofar as contraventions of employment rights legislation are concerned. In this regard, Employers/Vessel Owners are afforded all reasonable opportunity to rectify contraventions and, where relevant, pay any unpaid wages and/or make good on entitlements arising from these contraventions. Following the detection of contraventions, the WRC issues, in all cases, a contravention notification to the vessel owner. Such notifications have issued in respect of the 157 contraventions of employment rights and employment permits legislation detected to date by WRC Inspectors. If the owner addresses the contravention to the WRC’s satisfaction within the time specified in the notice, the matter can be closed without recourse to further proceedings.
However, it is the policy of the WRC to issue Compliance Notices or Fixed Payment Notices and/or to initiate legal proceedings in cases where an owner has failed or is unwilling to effect compliance. I am advised by the WRC that it has been necessary to date to initiate two prosecutions and that further prosecution proceedings will be initiated where owners refuse or fail to engage with Inspectors and/or address contraventions.
The Deputy will be aware that arising from the recommendations of the Task Force on allegations regarding treatment of workers on Irish fishing trawlers, an atypical work permission scheme was introduced for non-EEA fishers working on Irish fishing vessels. The scheme is administered by the Department of Justice and Equality and the Irish National Immigration Service (INIS) on behalf of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
A number of agencies and organisations are involved in the monitoring and enforcement of the scheme and have signed up to a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in order to provide a rigorous and effective inspection system. They include An Garda Síochána, Bord Iascaigh Mhara, INIS, the Naval Service, the Revenue Commissioners, the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority, my Department, the Workplace Relations Commission, the Health and Safety Authority, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and, with a number of exclusions, the Marine Survey Office of the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport.
The WRC’s responsibilities relate to the enforcement of the Employment Permits Acts and employment rights legislation including minimum wage legislation. The Marine Survey Office in the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport is responsible for enforcing legislation relating to rest periods and maximum working time for seafarers and fishing vessel crew.
Some 113 of the 174 fishing vessels which come within the aegis of the Atypical Scheme have been inspected to date by the WRC and the remainder will be inspected by Summer of this year. Case files relating to all vessels will remain open until such time as WRC inspectors are satisfied that compliance has been achieved.
