Vol. 616 No. 6
5 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment when legislation to give statutory entitlements under work-life balance policies will be introduced; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11287/06]
The challenge in achieving work-life balance in individual enterprises is to establish policies that reflect the reality of the workplace and meet the many diverse needs of employees. To this end, the development of work-life balance policies in Ireland is addressed on two fronts, first, through appropriate legislative measures which provide for statutory entitlements such as maternity leave, adoptive leave, carer's leave and parental leave as well as maximum working hours, rest periods, annual leave and public holiday entitlements and, second, through the voluntary approach which is supported by the work of the national framework committee for work-life balance policies.
The committee, which was established under the social partnership process and chaired by my Department, is charged with supporting and facilitating the development of family-friendly policies at the level of the enterprise through the development of a package of practical measures. One of the tasks of the committee is to examine how best to improve access to family-friendly working arrangements to realise the potential benefits that these arrangements would offer from an equality and competitiveness perspective.
The Government is committed to the two-pronged approach to achieving the goal of making workplaces more family friendly, namely, the provision of statutory entitlements through legislative measures and the voluntary approach at the level of the enterprise, which is encouraged at national level by the national framework committee for work-life balance policies.
I thank the Minister of State for his reply but while a mission statement on work-life balance is fine, the question refers to what the Department intends to do to achieve it. We have just had a discussion on unscrupulous employers. The country is not full of unscrupulous employers. They are very few in number, thankfully, but they exist. People are working for such employers on a permanent or contract basis and we must be serious about legislating to ensure that their families can co-exist with a working life.
Yesterday we dealt with the Parental Leave (Amendment) Bill. Despite it being very welcome legislation which people are desperately awaiting, it is highly inflexible. The inflexibility regarding the time slots that can be taken, the gaps between the time slots and the period in a child's life in which leave can be taken must be lessened. The majority of people in the Republic——
I must remind the Deputy that this is Question Time.
——feel they work longer for less money than people in Northern Ireland. Apart from the one day of advertising undertaken annually on work-life balance, what does the Minister of State intend to do to ensure that such a balance is achieved? He has referred to legislation, most of which has a very small impact on people's lives over a very short period of time in the life of a child. What does the Minister of State intend to do with regard to inflexible employers?
I disagree strongly with Deputy Lynch with regard to the legislation that is already in place. Legislation governing maternity leave, adoptive leave and other issues has had a considerable impact.
The impact is over a very concentrated period of time.
Nevertheless, it is a very important time.
Yes.
The legislation has had a considerable impact. We will best address this issue by having a sensible mix of legislative provisions and voluntary partnership mechanisms. Traditionally we have looked to the partnership process at an exclusively national level and have not developed it at enterprise level to the extent that we might. As I mentioned, the group has made 42 recommendations. I am chairman of the high level group and am pleased with the level of co-operation from the employer and trade union representatives, as well as the various Departments that have a central involvement. People are clearly intent on ensuring that we deliver on as many as possible of the 42 recommendations, some of which are very far-reaching and go beyond even what Deputy Lynch might seek.
Senator White has legislation in the wings which is similar to legislation in the United Kingdom, which I am sure will be considered at some stage. This issue is central to the current social partnership negotiations.
Yesterday, when the Select Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights was dealing with the Parental Leave (Amendment) Bill, the Minister said that the updating of that legislation would depend on the outcome of the centralised bargaining process currently under way. Given that the aforementioned legislation came about as a result of the last centralised pay agreement four years ago, does the Minister of State envisage updating the legislation next year or in four years' time? This is particularly relevant considering we are talking about 14 weeks, while other countries provide for up to three years parental leave. What is the Minister of State's estimate on the timeframe in respect of ensuring that the critical years of a child's life are spent with parents who are not as harassed as many are currently?
No more than other Deputies, I am very poorly qualified to lecture anybody on family-friendly policies or family-friendly engagement in the workplace. However, we have made tremendous progress. While the legislative measures are enormously important, ultimately they can only work if we have, at enterprise level, a culture of ensuring that provision is made for people to carry on their family lives. Traditionally, the view was that needs relating to caring commitments were paramount but many people have now come to realise that people in the workplace have other interests they wish to pursue, alongside their working lives, including study, leisure and so forth. A balance is intrinsically important from the perspective of the individual employee. Many employers have realised that when they introduce policies which facilitate employees who have caring responsibilities or other interests, everybody benefits, including the employers, through increased productivity on the part of the employee.
6 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of jobs announced in respect of each project by IDA Ireland for each year from 2000 to 2005, inclusive; the number of jobs actually created in each case; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11360/06]
During the period from January 2000 to December 2005, 160 announcements relating to the intended creation of 30,442 new jobs in companies supported by IDA Ireland were made. I am arranging for a statement setting out the names of the companies involved, details of the activity engaged in, location and the number of new jobs announced to be forwarded to the Deputy.
During the relevant period, client companies of IDA Ireland created 79,984 jobs. A total of 22,998 were created in 2000, 13,052 in 2001, 10,928 in 2002, 9,576 in 2003, 10,825 in 2004 and 12,605 in 2005. Of course, many of these jobs related to projects announced prior to the period in question or not announced at all. It is important to point out that there is always a time lag, often stretching over a number of years, between the announcement of new jobs and their creation. That time is required for such activities as locating and acquiring a suitable site for the company's operations, obtaining planning permission, constructing a facility, installing machinery and recruiting and training staff.
Of the estimated 80,000 created during the period in question, 14,381 related to projects announced during the period. A total of 635 were announced in 2000, 1,590 in 2001, 1,667 in 2002, 3,069 in 2003, 3,358 in 2004 and 4,062 in 2005. Given the time lags to which I have just referred, the process of creating the jobs announced will continue for some years to come.
I am glad the Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Michael Ahern, got back in the action as his colleague the Minister of State, Deputy Killeen, was getting overburdened.
I agree with the Minister of State on the timelag between when new jobs are announced and when they are created. Does he have a figure to indicate in accumulative terms the total number of announcements made and the total number created to date? Has he an indication as to the regional dimension of the figures?
In 2000, 14,000 extra jobs were created. In 2001 and 2002, there was a fall-off of approximately 4,600. In 2003, the reduction stood at 3,630. In 2004 there was an increase of 197 and of approximately 4,300 in 2005. Multinational companies made regional locations their preference. Out of the total of 71 investments, 46 were located outside of Dublin. Some 50 research and development investment projects were supported by IDA Ireland, involving a total investment in excess of €260 million, a record in number and value and an 85% increase in value from 2004. Last year was the best since 2000 in terms of the range of quality of new investment and in the development of research capability and capacity. Approximately 40% of all new jobs in IDA Ireland backed projects earn in excess of €37,000 per annum.
7 Dr. Upton asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to serious concerns regarding the continued operation of so-called pyramid schemes; if, in particular, his attention has further been drawn to the operation of a such a scheme in the Cork area which is reported to have brought in up to €12 million; if he intends to provide the public with additional protection against so called pyramid schemes; if, in particular, he will amend the legislation to cover so called gifting schemes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11268/06]
I am aware of reports of schemes operating in the Cork area whereby people are apparently prepared to hand over amounts of money in the expectation of receiving multiples of that amount in return. The Pyramid Selling Act 1980 prohibits people from inducing other people to participate in pyramid schemes. As the Act only applies to goods and services, there is a legal doubt as to whether the type of transaction in question is covered by the Act.
The Garda Siochána, the enforcing authority for the Act, is investigating some schemes in the Cork area under the Pyramid Selling Act 1980. I do not want, therefore, to interfere with their investigations. Ultimately it is for the courts to determine whether legislation applies in any particular case.
The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment has instructed departmental officials to contact the Garda Deputy Commissioner responsible for the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation seeking the views of the Garda Siochána on any difficulties being experienced under current legislation. The official will also ask whether the Garda Siochána has any suggestions as to how the legislation might be improved, based on its experience dealing with the sort of practices employed by the people who devise and promote such schemes.
In the meanwhile work continues in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment on the transposition of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005/29/EC. The directive aims to protect the consumer by, inter alia, banning certain practices. One practice is described as:
. . .establishing, operating or promoting a pyramid promotional scheme where a consumer gives consideration for the opportunity to receive compensation that is derived primarily from the introduction of other consumers into the scheme rather than from the sale or consumption of products.
Although the directive is due to be transposed by June 2007, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment hopes to have the legislation ready this year.
People should be vigilant in how they use their money. People should reflect on whether it is realistic to expect other people to give them large sums of money for nothing.
Advising people to be cautious on how they use their money when legalisation preventing such pyramid schemes is not in place is like telling people to be careful when they are crossing the road but not providing any pedestrian crossings. The Minister must realise the existing legislation for pyramid schemes is inadequate and lacks the power of prosecution. That the Minister will have legislation in place this year does not fill me with any great confidence, considering his record over several years.
I urge the Minister to insert into the pyramid selling legislation the type of necessary safeguards to outlaw the practices in question. If the Garda could have prosecuted at this stage, it would have. How long will the Minister wait for the Garda Deputy Commissioner's views on the scheme in question? How long does the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment intend to dally on the issue? It did not have to wait for a pyramid scheme of this nature to reform the legislation. Calls for the legislation to be updated have been made for some time, yet they were ignored. I am sure the Minister hopes the matter will go away again.
The Minister has acknowledged the necessity for new legislation in the area. The directive is to be introduced in 2007, but the Minister is intent on having legislation in place prior to that date. Media reports of gifting schemes emerged in January 2006. We are aware of a particular scheme taking place in the west Cork region which has expanded to the Cork North Central constituency. The Garda initiated an investigation under the Pyramid Selling Act 1980. According to the Office of the Attorney General, however, a problem exists in obtaining proof to sustain prosecutions when there is no written evidence. We recognise legislation must be introduced to control this.
8 Mr. Morgan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment in view of the most recent revelation of worker exploitation, Polish workers employed by a company (details supplied) on the refurbishment of the Moneypoint ESB plant being paid below the minimum wage, his views on the fact that the labour inspectorate remains inadequately staffed and resourced to ensure the enforcement of existing labour law. [11228/06]
The labour inspectorate contacted the principal parties in the ESB dispute on Tuesday, 13 March 2006 and subsequently met senior representatives of the ESB and its agents. These contacts have been ongoing since and considerable progress has been made.
The enforcement of employment rights is often characterised as a discrete function undertaken solely by the labour inspectorate. There is an extensive corpus of legislation providing for a range of obligations and entitlements for both employers and employees. The employment rights arena is populated by various bodies, for example, the Labour Court. As always, there is scope for improvement but the solution is not to just simply appoint additional labour inspectors.
The challenge in a rapidly growing economy is to ensure adequate, timely and effective enforcement of compliance with statutory and other provisions. This was recognised in Sustaining Progress. Arising from commitments then, the Government has completed reviews of the employment rights bodies, the mandate and resourcing of the labour inspectorate, the joint labour committee system. Each of these reviews has been completed and follow-on work is now in train.
The broad question of sustaining employment standards and initiatives to ensure employment rights compliance is being addressed as a priority in the current round of national partnership talks. Individuals may also take their cases before a commissioner in the rights commissioner service of the Labour Relations Commission.
There is a commitment to a campaign of dissemination on obligations and entitlements arising under employment rights legislation. The campaign will be targeted at both employers and employees and will focus on particular audiences such as those engaged in sectors now generally populated by non-Irish workers.
Is the Minister of State considering introducing legislation to hold the first contractor responsible for ensuring all labour legislation is adhered to? With 31 inspectors to a workforce of 2.07 million people, each inspector is responsible for 66,775 workers. It is a vast number and those inspectors now have an additional legislative burden. Does the Minister of State consider that the additional legislative burden the inspectorate has to handle has been matched by additional numbers of inspectors? It certainly does not appear to have been.
Media reports in the past week have suggested the Minister of State may be on the verge of making proposals concerning the labour inspectorate. Could he tell the House what plans he has in this regard?
In early 2005, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment circulated to the social partners a report entitled Mandate and Resourcing of the Labour Inspectorate. Will the Minister of State tell us what the shortcomings were in the current set up, and whether they were identified in that report?
The Deputy is correct in stating that it can be extraordinarily difficult to establish who exactly is the employer of a particular employee. For example, frequently on building sites not only is there a principal contractor — this has arisen in the case of Moneypoint as well — but also there is a subcontractor under which there might be other subcontractors. Therefore, there is a particular difficulty in identifying exactly who is the employer. That is one of the issues currently being examined with a view to ensuring the inspector will have the right to pinpoint exactly who is responsible for a particular employee's pay and conditions.
Is that a "No"? Does that mean the Minister of State is not considering legislation at present?
In so far as it can be addressed, that will form a central part of the legislation, which will arise from the current round of social partnership negotiations. The number of inspectors has nearly doubled in the 18 months during which I have been in the Department. That is not to say, however, that the number was in any way near to being adequate previously. Nevertheless, considerable progress is being made.
The numbers have halved, not doubled.
I am referring to the number of inspectors.
Okay.
They rose from ten to 14 and from 17 to the current level of 31. Depending on which dates one takes, the number has more than doubled. In view of the history of numbers and dates quoted in the Chamber in recent days, however, it might be better for us to stay away from that territory.
I think so, too. It helps to keep one's mouth shut.
The review of the mandate and resources issue will inform whatever legislation arises in this area. I cannot say with particular certainty to the Deputy or to the House exactly what will be in the legislation. However, every attempt will certainly be made to ensure all the shortcomings that have been pinpointed, both in terms of mandate and resources, will be addressed in new legislation or amending legislation, if appropriate.
There is another idea floating about, to which I think Deputy Morgan is referring, that either a new agency should be formed to take over the labour inspectorate or the inspectorate should be placed with one of the existing agencies. Deputy Howlin and others have expressed strong views that the Health and Safety Authority might be the appropriate agency with which to place that inspectorate. No decisions have been made in that regard but I assure the House the matter is being approached with an open mind.
I take the Minister of State is telling us the notion of making the inspectorate a statutory agency is not immediately on the cards. Can he address the concern many of us have that the issue of legislation concerning the inspectorate is not being properly addressed currently because it is being used as a bargaining chip in the social partnership talks? As we all know, those talks could drag on for a considerable time.
I certainly hope the talks will not drag on too long but it is inevitable that these issues would be central to the current round of negotiations. Even if the events in Gama Construction and elsewhere had not arisen, the reality is that these reports were commissioned from the previous round of partnership talks with a view to being considered in the current round. That was inevitably going to be the case. Obviously, from the Government's viewpoint, and that of the Oireachtas, it is desirable to have some level of agreement among the social partners on how we proceed. I believe we will have a large measure of agreement. We certainly have had, heretofore, concerning the reports.
While there is resistance in some areas to some of the changes proposed in the employment rights bodies, ultimately we will come to the view that what operates best in dealing with our current requirements is what we must do. I am confident we will have an agreement arising from social partnership on how we should proceed and that we will be able to do so.
9 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of inspections carried out by the labour inspectorate and the number of prosecutions initiated by the inspectorate in respect of 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and to date in 2006; if there are plans to increase this number during the remainder of 2006; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11272/06]
The number of workplace inspections/visits undertaken by the labour inspectorate, during and after normal business hours, and prosecutions initiated in respect of the years 2002 to 2005 and to date in 2006 are set out in the following tabular statement.
|
Year |
Inspections/Visits |
Prosecutions Initiated |
|
2002 |
8,323 |
25 |
|
2003 |
7,168 |
20 |
|
2004 |
5,160 |
14 |
|
2005 |
5,719 |
25 |
|
2006 |
2,985(to date) |
Nil(to date) |
The primary function of the labour inspectorate is to seek compliance and rectification of any breaches identified, including payment of any arrears due to employees. Inspectors pursue allegations of worker mistreatment and seek redress for the individual or individuals concerned and, if appropriate, a prosecution is initiated. Successful prosecution can be dependent on adequate support from witnesses.
Since November 2005, the number of labour inspectors assigned and serving has been increased to 31 officers. As part of the programme of work that is being implemented to train the new inspectors, their schedule includes a focus on national minimum wage compliance, which commenced in February 2006.
In addition to the new inspectors, a number of experienced officers are participating in this exercise to provide support and guidance as well as undertaking inspections themselves. It is expected the additional resources and the focused campaign will substantially increase the number of inspections and visits carried out in 2006.
The Minister of State has provided the same information we received in the last written answer concerning the amount of prosecutions that were initiated. How many of them were successful and how many have been completed? Does the Minister of State have those figures?
I will get them for the Deputy. I do not have them at the moment.
I think those statistics are important because initiating a prosecution and bringing it to a conclusion are two entirely different things.
The Minister of State is aware of the Labour Party's position on the Health and Safety Authority and he has heard it often enough from Deputy Howlin. Most of us were under the impression that, in this instance, the inspectors unearthed wrongdoing by employers or saw to it that they were compliant. It would appear, however, that the inspectors are now being contacted by employees on a small scale and are then bringing prosecutions. Surely that should be the central job of the various organisations dealing with people who claim to be badly treated at work, rather than being a function of the labour inspectorate. It is outrageous to have the inspectorate tied up at that level. Are there plans to organise the inspectorate in such as way that its sole function would be to inspect places of employment? Construction sites are not the only locations where workers' rights are abused, other areas are also involved. How many initiated prosecutions were concluded?
As I said, I will obtain the exact numbers of successful and completed prosecutions for Deputy Lynch. In fact, that was one of the factors which influenced the report on mandate and resources because successful prosecutions are extraordinarily difficult to achieve due to the level of proof needed and the lack of clarity surrounding the quality of payslips required. We wish to encourage people to raise questions with the labour inspectors. Obviously, we would like them to raise questions that are relevant to the inspectors and sometimes they are not quite sure that is the case. There is a substantial requirement on the burden of proof which most frequently includes a requirement that people are prepared to give evidence. The review recommends a change in that regard to the Employment Appeals Tribunal or the Labour Court in dealing with issues of this nature. That has considerable merit and may well happen.
As regards the HSA proposal, there are 100 inspectors with that authority but many of them are specialist inspectors. There seem to be considerable advantages in having people who are in any event visiting a premises check out the additional issues of, for example, payslips and pay and conditions. If we could manage to impart to employees the information on their rights, they would be in a position to draw the matter to the attention of the inspectorate and fewer visits would be required. Undoubtedly, while there would be many more prosecutions in the short term, in the medium and long term people would comply on a much wider scale than is the case.
10 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on whether there is the need for a public safety authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11356/06]
13 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on whether there is a need for a single safety authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11355/06]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 10 and 13 together.
A review group on public safety was established in November 1999. The group was chaired by Dr. Daniel O'Hare and was widely representative of Departments and various agencies and bodies. Its report, entitled A Review of Public Safety in Ireland, was published just over a year later.
The key recommendation of the group was that an office of public safety regulation should be considered, but there was not full agreement within the group on this key point. The group envisaged that such a public safety office would not itself be responsible for public safety but would have some form of overseeing or co-ordination role of all the agencies and bodies which have a function in public safety matters. Some members of the group expressed concerns about the duplication of existing services and the resulting unnecessary burden on public finances. Even within the group as a whole there appears to have been some doubts as to the long-term need for a new public safety office, which is shown in its proposal that the functioning, appropriateness and continuing need for the office should be reviewed within a five-year period.
It is evident that the review group's recommendation is inconclusive and a clear-cut case for the establishment of a new agency has not been made. Another State agency whose function is merely to oversee other agencies on public safety matters is not the right way forward.
The Government task force on emergency planning is chaired by the Minister for Defence and comprises other Ministers, senior officials of Departments and public authorities which make a key contribution to the emergency planning process. This is the top level structure giving policy and direction and which co-ordinates and oversees the emergency planning activities of all Departments and public authorities.
I agree with the Minister of State that a new agency is not necessary. However, somebody must take responsibility. Currently, if a serious accident occurs in a public place, nobody can investigate it. A number of cases have come to the attention of the Health and Safety Authority that would originally have been thought not to be within its remit, including road accidents on stretches of road where workmen were conducting road works and cases of MRSA in hospitals. Many people are concerned about who is in charge in terms of investigating these matters. Will the Minister of State at the very least agree that the Health and Safety Authority should be charged with responsibility? An agency of the State should be put in charge of this matter rather than creating a new one. Let us define what is meant by workplace to give certainty in this matter.
Deputy Hogan is correct that the background to the establishment of the review group was the fact that many cases referred to the Health and Safety Authority did not ordinarily come within its remit. In an ideal world there would be a clear delineation between the various agencies. There normally is such delineation, such as between the Garda Síochána and the Health and Safety Authority on road traffic issues, although grey areas occurred recently which were eventually sorted out.
The difficulty in the proposal for an over-arching body is that it would have no real responsibility itself and no capacity to examine issues. It would merely oversee the role of other bodies. It does not seem to be sensible to establish an agency with that remit. I take the point made by Deputy Hogan that if the system could be improved in terms of clarity on the responsibility of various agencies, it would be helpful.
With all due respect to the Minister of State's remarks, the system certainly must be improved given that no agency takes responsibility for any accident in a public place. We have nothing so it must be improved. Some existing agency must take responsibility. I do not advocate a new agency. The Minister of State will remember the bus crash on the quays in Dublin where people were seriously injured. Nobody was in charge or responsible. In spite of that accident and a report in November 1999, the Government has done nothing.
As a general principle, road traffic issues are a matter for the Garda Síochána and I understand that was the case in that instance.
That is not right.
Some closure may have been achieved. It is difficult to delineate responsibility in some cases where accidents occur on what is de facto a workplace such as county council roadworks. The two most recent cases brought some clarity and a memorandum of understanding between the Health and Safety Authority and the Garda Síochána is visited in these situations. That is probably the situation with most clarity. In other cases it may not be at all clear who is responsible. As I stated in the initial answer, the Government task force on emergency planning is under the aegis of the Minister for Defence and deals with major incidents of that nature.
Will the Minister of State give an undertaking to the House that when accidents take place in public areas, an agency will take responsibility for investigating them and dealing with these matters? Will he undertake that he will provide certainty on these matters in light of the concern about a major accident that may take place in a public place in future? We have a number of reports and examples of a shortage of delineation of responsibility. Will the Minister of State give an undertaking that he will return to the House with proposals in the not too distant future to ensure that where an accident or serious incident occurs in a public place, we will have an agency responsible to take action where appropriate?
The recommendations of the review group are anything but conclusive. They are quite inconclusive. At this stage, the Government task force on emergency planning is the group which deals with situations of this nature. It is chaired by the Minister for Defence and perhaps a question to him might be more appropriate in terms of establishing the remit and role of that group.
The Minister of State might speak to him.
I cannot give the undertaking across the range of issues which Deputy Hogan mentioned.
Will the Minister of State ask the Minister for Defence?
I will mention it to the Minister for Defence. The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 considerably improved the situation, which we will see better soon when the general application and construction regulations are in place.
11 Mr. Howlin asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the investigation which is planned into the disclosure that Polish workers employed by a contractor at the ESB power station in Moneypoint were being paid well below the national minimum wage; the sanctions or penalties available against companies in such situations; the measures which have been taken by his Department to date to ensure full compliance with all labour standards by all contractors, especially those working for State companies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11257/06]
The labour inspectorate of the Department is responsible for monitoring certain employment conditions for all categories of workers in Ireland, including immigrant workers. The inspectorate operates without any differentiation with regard to worker nationality as statutory employment rights and protections apply to immigrant workers in exactly the same manner as they do to other workers.
The labour inspectorate contacted the principal parties in this issue on Tuesday, March 13 and subsequently met senior representatives of the ESB and their agents and these contacts have been ongoing since. In the meantime, inspectors have commenced inquiries with the contractor concerned in this case and have visited both the head office and the site in Moneypoint. These inquiries are continuing and a further visit is planned.
I may have read most of this reply in response to four or five previous questions.
Do any of the 31 inspectors speak a foreign language or is it a requirement that they do so? Some of the most common foreign languages involved in this sector are Czech, Polish and Latvian. I do not argue that they should speak these languages. I am interested in whether they do because a major communication problem exists. The Department's website is not in operation. Do the inspectors have access to interpreters? That would be important.
The inspectors have access to interpreters in this case and make use of them. That was one of the matters which slowed down progress in obtaining information initially. To the best of my knowledge the Department's website was corrected and is back up and running since 21 March. I understand the correction was made in one place and it was assumed that the package automatically changed it everywhere else. That did not turn out to be the case and making the change became a difficult process. Some places on the website showed €7.65 while others showed the old rate of €7.
12 Ms Burton asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to a draft report prepared for the National Economic and Social Council by the International Organisation for Migration, which warns of the lack of effective policies and thinking to protect the employment prospects of local workers in a less favourable economic environment; his response to the report; the steps he intends to take to deal with the issues raised in the report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11259/06]
I am informed that the report, entitled Managing Migration in Ireland: A Social and Economic Analysis, commissioned by the National Economic and Social Council, NESC, and undertaken by the International Organisation for Migration has not yet been finalised. I understand that NESC is considering a draft of the report and that it will formulate its comments on it over the next few months. It would not be appropriate for me to make any detailed comments on the possible content of the report or on the NESC view of it.
However, I look forward to the publication of the report and hearing NESC's views on it. I expect that this work will be a useful contribution to examining all of the social and economic effects of migration into Ireland and how best to deal with them in a fully integrated manner. This Department already works closely with the other Departments and State agencies in this field, but any recommendations in this regard will be carefully considered.
As regards the general issue of the potential for immigration to generate adverse labour market impacts in a less favourable economic environment, no such less favourable economic environment is in prospect. We have strong economic and employment growth and most of our problems are those of success. Recent labour market data published by the Central Statistics Office do not suggest there has been any significant adverse labour market impact due to migration into Ireland. In the context of the Employment Permits Bill 2005 the Minister announced new arrangements actively to manage economic migration from outside the European Economic Area. This active management includes giving priority to migrants in sectors where there are strategic skills shortages and only issuing work permits for other occupations on a restricted basis. For example, he has indicated that as part of the new arrangements, work permit applications would require not only advertising with FÁS, but also in the national newspapers.
This Government pays particular attention to ensuring that the employment rights of all workers, both Irish and foreign are protected. In the past 18 months the number of labour inspectors has almost doubled and the Department is engaged with the social partners on how compliance and enforcement of employment rights can be enhanced into the future.
This report describes how we treat people who come here. The investigation does not necessarily stop when dealing with employment and employment rights. If we agree that we need 40,000 people a year over the next few years and that the economy will be as good as it has been for the past six years, the Minister of State should be able to tell those who come to service our economy that they can become citizens after a certain length of time and that their families may join them.
People are being denied these rights and those on short-term work permits will not stay, although we need them. We should treat them as if we hope they will stay here in the long term. Does the Minister of State intend doing anything about this problem?
Issues of citizenship and family reunification are, in the first instance, matters for the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. The Employment Permits Bill provides for certain categories of workers to have automatic family reunification rights and automatic rights for spouses to work here. The implications of the positive participation of people from other countries in our society reach beyond the workplace. These issues will be examined in this report which, among others, will reform public policy in this area. The Government regards this as a matter of urgency and is trying to address it.
Written Answers follow Adjournment Debate.
