To ask the Minister for Labour the main provisions and implications for Ireland of the draft regulation C. 49, 18.5, 1972 on conflicting laws on labour relations within the Community; and if discussions on it have yet been held in this country.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - EEC Labour Relations Regulation.
139.
The proposed regulation provides that labour relations in a member state of the EEC would generally be governed by the law in force within that state. The regulation provides, however, that foreign workers from member states, may elect, under certain conditions, to have their own country's labour laws applied to them rather than those of the host country but nevertheless many important basic laws of the host country would still apply to the foreign worker.
The general implication for Ireland of the proposed regulation is therefore that foreign workers employed in an Irish subsidiary of a company with headquarters elsewhere in the Community would be subject to Irish labour legislation unless they elected to be subject, with certain exceptions, to the labour legislation of their own country.
I am in consultation with the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and the Federated Union of Employers in regard to the proposed regulation.
Does the Minister expect that there will be a decision on these proposals in the fairly near future? Does he expect that there will be a decision in the Council on this matter fairly soon?
I could not really say. It is likely that there will, but I would not say fairly soon.