Enda Kenny
Ceist:2 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for Labour the measures he proposes to take to encourage (1) greater worker participation, (2) increased shareholding and (3) profit sharing by workers; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Worker Participation.
A wide range of measures is already in place both in the public and private sector, to encourage employee participation.
In the public sector the Worker Participation (State Enterprise) Acts provide for the election of worker directors to the boards of 11 State companies and the introduction of participative arrangements at sub-board level in 35 State companies.
In the private sector a joint FIE/ICTU declaration on employee involvement worked out under the aegis of the Employer Labour Conference was published in June.
The declaration which I regard as a significant development provides a framework within which employee involvement might be encouraged and developed on a voluntary basis.
The Department of Labour have published "Guidelines for Employee Participation" and "Case Studies in Employee in Participation" which are designed to encourage more companies to introduce employee involvement arrangements and to assist in identifying and developing suitable arrangements.
Under the Finance Acts a number of schemes have been introduced to encourage and promote financial participation. The take-up on the schemes is very encouraging and to date over 300 schemes have been approved by the Revenue Commissioners.
There have also been a number of developments at European Community level. Measures brought forward under the Commission action programme to implement the EC Charter of Fundamental Social Rights of Workers include a draft directive on information and consultation for workers in transnational companies and a draft Council recommendation on the financial participation.
I intend to encourage the ongoing process of employer involvement in both the public and private sectors, as employee involvement is an important feature of good industrial relations practice.
As the Estimates have been drafted on the assumption of 275,000 people out of work in 1992, does the Minister have any comparative figures in terms of the proportion of workers in this country who are eligible and who are participating in these matters——
That might be a matter for a separate question, Deputy.
——as against our counterparts in Europe, considering how significant and important this is in the view of the Minister.
As the Chair indicated it is a separate question. As to the rate of participation, I do not have that information, though it would obviously have to be on a proportionate basis. It is something I would like to look into. If the Deputy had addressed that question to me I might have had the information for him.
Does the Minister have the figure for the number of workers here who are participating in the various schemes mentioned.
There is such a variety of them that I do not have those figures immediately available. Just to give the Deputy an example, there are 194 share option schemes and 113 profit-sharing schemes recently approved by the Revenue Commissioners. Even the Revenue Commissioners would not have immediately the numbers involved in each of those schemes. If the Deputy communicates with me early in the New Year I will see if we can get the details.
He will be otherwise engaged.
I hope it is what will very definitely be another profit-sharing experience in every sense of the word.