asked the Minister for Labour if his Department intend to implement the proposals in the report on the contract cleaning industry which was published recently.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Contract Cleaning Industry.
13.
The report referred to by the Deputy is the research project "The Hidden Workers" which was commissioned by the Employment Equality Agency and carried out by Ms. Mary Daly, Social Research Centre, Limerick.
The main factors which the project concluded had an influence on the conditions of part time cleaning workers were:
(1) The organisation of the cleaning industry; in this connection the report saw a clear role for a joint labour committee to set minimum standards and conditions for the industry outside Dublin.
(2) The nature of part time work.
As the Deputy is aware, a joint labour committee was established in April 1984 for Dublin city and county in response to an application from the ICTU on behalf of a number of trade unions. I understand that union members of the joint labour committee are at present considering applying to the Labour Court for the extension of the coverage of the committee to the entire country.
As regards part time work, the Deputy will be aware that in the Protection of Employees (Employers' Insolvency) Act, 1984 the hours of work to qualify for coverage of the Unfair Dismissals Act, the Redundancy Payments Acts and the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Act were reduced to 18 hours.
The report highlights the influence of the client firm. In this connection I would like to point out that public service contracts are required to include a fair wages clause in the conditions for cleaning contracts.
The report also suggests that some procedures in the contract cleaning industry may be in breach of both the Social Welfare and Revenue Commissioners' regulations. I have written to the Ministers concerned asking them whether there is anything they can do about this.
I am sure everybody in the House welcomes this report because last year, during the debate on the Protection of Employees Act, there was much discussion of this matter. Does the Minister feel that publication of this report and whatever amendments he can make will close the loopholes referred to in the course of the debate in this House last year in which it was claimed that the cleaning contract industry was notorious and has been proven guilty many times of abusing existing legislation in order either to dismiss unfairly or employ, so that people cannot be covered under the various statutory regulations?
The Deputy will be aware that in April 1984 I moved to establish the joint labour committee for the cleaning industry in the Dublin area where the largest volume of demand exists and they have established a minimum wage or rates, for that area. We are now awaiting the Labour Court's response to the JLC's proposal in regard to the proposition to extend it to the rest of the country. My view is that I would be in favour of it. That constitutes a massive improvement on the conditions of part time cleaning workers to date. The second point is in regard to abuses by some employers. We have taken steps to ensure that any contract cleaning company who tender for work in the public service, for the cleaning of Government or semi-State offices, under the terms of their contract will have to ensure that they comply with all of the statutory requirements which the industry, the Revenue Commissioners and the Social Welfare code impose on them. That would be a condition of their contract. Therefore any breach in the observation of those legal obligations would put the contract at risk. That is in line with the action the Government have taken in regard to the new package of home improvement grants under which we are effectively trying to ensure that the taxpayers' money is not exploited.
In any examination of the contracts would the Minister ask his officials involved in this work to pay particular attention to the maximum and minimum hours per week involved in those contracts, because it is in that area that abuse has existed or still does exist?
That is a helpful suggestion and we shall have another look at that also.