Vol. 878 No. 2
1. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation his views on the most recent EUROSTAT figures that show that 128,000 persons, 7% of the labour market aged 15 to 74 years working here, are underemployed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18467/15]
EUROSTAT recently showed that 128,000 people, representing 7% of the labour market, were underemployed and seeking more hours of employment. I want to discuss the strategies the Minister has to deal with the problem.
The concept of part-time underemployment is based on ILO and EUROSTAT definitions and includes job holders who are working part time, willing to work additional hours and available to work additional hours. The level of part-time underemployment in Ireland has been falling steadily from its peak in the second quarter of 2012 when it stood at 157,000 or 8.5% of total employment and now stands at 115,500, the lowest level since 2010, or 6% of total employment.
The Government’s An Action Plan for Jobs, launched in 2012, has successfully tackled underemployment by fostering a substantial increase in full-time employment. The latest quarterly national household survey figures show that, for the year to the end of quarter four of 2014, the number of people in employment increased by 29,100, which was represented by an increase in full-time employment of 39,600 and a decrease in part-time employment of 10,500. Almost 90,000 more people are at work since the launch of the first plan in 2012. All of the increase in employment in the past two years has been in the number of full-time jobs. The Government has given detailed reports on the implementation of the plan from its initiation on an ongoing quarterly basis. Over 1,000 actions have been completed, with an implementation rate of over 90%. We continue to concentrate on getting more people into work and additionally are increasing the emphasis on regional jobs with the launch of the regional action plan for jobs.
The 128,000 people who are seeking further employment are constrained in finding it. They see others finding full-time employment, while they remain in part-time employment. While I accept that there has been a fall, we are still 3% or 4% above the EU average according to EUROSTAT figures. Does this point to the danger of focusing efforts on job creation in part-time sectors and sectors which offer zero-hour contracts and low wages? What assistance is the Minister providing, in working with the Tánaiste and employers, in moving people from part-time to full-time work? Is there co-ordination?
This is a work in progress and we are making good headway, from the peak of 157,000 in 2012. When the statistics process started in Ireland, the number was 100,000 and we are getting back to pre-crash levels in so far as we know what the figures are. We are not concentrating on job creation in sectors that offer zero-hour contracts or part-time work. The evidence is that the increase in employment in the past two years has been in full-time posts. The number of part-time posts has fallen somewhat. At the beginning of the recession there was a surge in the number of part-time jobs, but that naturally led to a period during which the level of part-time work started to fall and full-time work opportunities emerged. The sectors we are building are ones with long-term sustainable futures in manufacturing, food production, tourism, ICT and so on. We are making steady progress and continue to focus on those strong sectors that have viable futures. We are also looking at the concept of zero-hour contracts, on which the Minister of State, Deputy Gerald Nash, will answer questions later.
The programmes of the Tánaiste emphasise full-time work. For example, JobsPlus offers a valuable incentive to an employer to take on a person 12 months out of work. The employer must offer full-time employment hours to qualify for the subsidy of €72 per week for two years. Policy is very much geared to delivering full-time employment opportunities on which people can build a career.
Is a skills profile available in order that full-time opportunities being created can be made available to those in the relevant cohort in order that they will have a chance of finding full-time employment within the sectors to which the Minister referred? Is someone working with this cohort to ensure the skills profile is kept up to date and their skills are relevant to the opportunities being created? Many of the people concerned may not be qualified to work in the sectors which are growing or may not believe they are qualified when they are. An intervention through skills profiling or the provision of career advice could be of assistance.
I do not think they are a static group, with people leaving or entering the live register. Many of them are on the live register part time. There is a profile under the probability of exit, PEX, system which is shaping new programmes to assist people to get back to work. Also, it gives a rating for with whom the Intreo office should work because they are at higher risk of falling into the margins. There is a focused effort on identifying the profile of those who are vulnerable and designing activation programmes to support them.
2. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation when he was notified by the Competition Authority of the proposed acquisition of Siteserv by Millington Limited; and if details of the sale were made available to him. [18470/15]
Many citizens have great difficulty when they see the return to the national stage of Anglo Irish Bank in the form of IBRC, the power of the golden circle in society and the influence of massive conglomerates in the State. This question is about when the Minister was notified by the Competition Authority of the proposed acquisition of Siteserv by Millington Limited and whether the details of the sale were made available to him.
After the acquisition was agreed to by the parties involved, the Competition Authority received notification on 16 March 2012. Following this, notification of the proposed transaction was sent to me, as Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, in accordance with section 23(1)(a) of the Competition Act 2002, on 20 March 2012 as the Competition Authority considered it to be a media merger within the meaning of the Act. The merger notification form I received contained information that followed the format specified for such transactions by the Competition Authority at the time. As to be expected, reference was made to the share sale agreement between Siteserv plc and Millington Limited.
The only function of the Competition Authority, the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation and the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation was in respect of the effect on competition within the economy of this transaction. No examination or briefing was provided for on any aspect of the transactions or companies involved.
To have done otherwise would have been to act outside their powers.
The Competition Authority’s phase 1 examination of the transaction from a competition perspective and on the basis of available evidence led it to a determination that the proposed transaction would not lead to a substantial lessening of competition in the State. That determination was notified to me on 21 May 2012. I agreed with the advice from my officials and on that basis the transaction was allowed to proceed.
It appears that the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation was the first member of the Cabinet to be made aware of the impending sale, and that the details were provided to him. Was he aware of the scale of the write-down? Was he aware of how the shareholders were to be provided for? Did subsequent write-downs for companies owned by Denis O'Brien give the Minister any pause for thought? There was a write-down of €64 million in the case of Blue Ocean Associates, €150 million in the case of Topaz, €75 million in the case of Beacon Hospital and €138 million in the case of Independent News & Media. Most of those write-downs related to banks either owned or part-owned by the State. I understand why there might be limits to the interaction and role the Competition Authority can have, but were there paper walls for the Minister? Did the Minister have all of this information and did he share that information with the Minister for Finance and the rest of the Cabinet? Did the Minister see it as his responsibility to ensure that there was full disclosure and transparency regarding all of these actions?
I can assure the Deputy that none of those details was provided. As I said earlier, the only function of the authority, myself and the Department was with regard to the effect of this transaction on competition in the Irish economy. No examination or briefing was provided on any other aspects of the transaction or the companies involved. To have done so would have been to act outside our powers. This was a limited issue in respect of whether the sale would have an impact on competition, and the information provided to the Competition Authority was solely on that basis. On that basis it advised that it would have no adverse impact on competition in the Irish market.
One of the difficulties I and many citizens have is the relationship between these large businesses and Fine Gael and other political parties in the State. It is a responsibility of Cabinet Ministers to fully exhaust the public good with regard to their engagements with these interactions. We know that officials in the Department of Finance had serious concerns about the Siteserv deal and that the relationship between the Department and the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, IBRC, had become toxic, with the former chairman of the IBRC endeavouring to terminate the secondment of senior Department officials to that State-owned bank. After many parliamentary questions from Deputy Catherine Murphy and other Deputies we are aware that there were major difficulties in that Department with the process. Why was it that the Minister, when presiding over such an unusual, strange, difficult and costly transaction, was satisfied so easily with the information he received? Were the Minister's instincts not to seek to exhaust, to the full extent, the questions citizens would have pertaining to these deals?
The information provided to the Competition Authority, and from it to the Department, is solely related to competition impact and whether this would represent an increased concentration in the marketplace and so forth. None of the issues that have given rise to public concern was brought to the attention of the Competition Authority. However, the Minister for Finance has established an inquiry into this matter, which will be overseen by a judge. The issues of public concern will be examined fully there and the results will be brought to the Oireachtas committee for full assessment. From the Government's point of view, it is responding to the public interest concern in this regard and the Minister has made the history of this matter clear.
3. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the progress of the investigation into the need for regulation in the waste management industry. [18466/15]
This question relates to the progress of the investigation and the need for regulation across the board in the waste management industry, including maintenance of vehicles, by the National Employment Rights Authority, NERA, and the Labour Court.
There are approximately 100 registered household kerbside waste collection companies operating in Ireland and there are approximately 3,000 waste collection permits currently extant. The industry employs almost 6,000 people directly while the indirect labour figure is less clear.
Given the number of companies competing for business in the household kerbside waste collection sector, the cost of service delivery is a deciding factor in winning customers and forms part of the differentiation in terms of competing on cost to the customer. As in the case of many other service provision sectors characterised by internal competition, wage costs are an important component of overall costs. Consequently service providers who can reduce their wage costs obtain an initial competitive advantage over others. It appears that for the majority of operators in the household kerbside waste collection sector many pay rates are at, or slightly above, the national minimum wage.
Mindful that the need for proper compliance with legislation is in the workers' and the wider public interest, my colleague, Deputy Bruton, sought reports from the relevant agencies under the aegis of the Department on the operation of the wider waste collection sector. These reports were furnished. These agencies included the National Employment Rights Authority, the Health and Safety Authority, HSA, the Labour Relations Commission, LRC, the National Consumer Agency and the Competition Authority.
Regulation of the waste management sector is a matter for my colleague, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Alan Kelly. He is currently considering options for the development of a new regulatory framework to reform the regulation of the collection of household waste. In this regard, the contents of these reports have been compiled and brought to the attention of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government. Officials of my Department are working with officials of that Department to ensure that issues arising from those reports are comprehended within that Department’s new regulatory framework.
Is it possible that all the issues the Minister of State raised could be debated in an Oireachtas committee? This question was tabled on foot of the Greyhound dispute last year when the workers were locked out in an attempt to reduce their wages. The company did reduce their wages and some people got their jobs back. What report was received back from the Labour Court after the Minister of State submitted his request to the Labour Court last year with regard to wages? Is it proposing that anything be put in place in the waste industry? The Minister of State said that the wages were at or above the minimum wage. Questions were raised regarding the roll out of brown bins and it was suggested that companies are not complying with that. There are also the health and safety concerns about vehicles. Can the Minister of State direct me to where I can view those reports and bring them to the House for debate? It is a very serious matter.
The HSA, an agency under the aegis of the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, decided to undertake a focused campaign of inspection and engagement with the players in the waste management sector last year. The aim was to ensure that there were improved standards of performance in the industry and a renewed focus on workplace health and safety due to the issues of which the Deputy and I are aware. The HSE met directly with representatives of the waste industry association to discuss improvements to standards in the industry. The National Employment Rights Authority carried out a review of its inspection cases involving waste collection, disposal and recycling services from 2009 to 2014. Interestingly, it found that the overall level of compliance in these cases closely followed overall employer compliance across industry.
The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government is undertaking a review of the waste management sector and my officials are in direct contact with officials in his Department to ensure that the Department fully understands the reports we received, the need for labour standards to be maintained in the industry and the needs surrounding labour costs.
Is the Minister recommending that some type of wage rate be set in the waste industry? I note from the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, that although waste management facilities only account for 15% of licences, they account for over 50% of the EPA investigations. That is a lot of investigations by the EPA for a small cohort of businesses.
Did anything particular in that respect come to the Minister of State's attention or that of the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Alan Kelly? There was grave concern over those areas in September when this investigation was initially mooted. Is the Department talking about bringing in a wage rate for the waste industry in general?
Under the legislation re-establishing joint labour committees, JLCs, it is not a matter for the Minister to dictate whether there should be a JLC or another wage setting mechanism. It is a matter for the Labour Court to examine the need for a particular type of wage setting mechanism in a sector.
I am always anxious to ensure that there are proper standards in every industry. Last year, the waste management industry was very much in focus because of the issues around the Greyhound dispute. We are publishing legislation this week in respect of additional wage setting mechanisms in the economy and the re-establishment of a constitutionally robust registered employment agreement system. Sectoral employment orders, which will be a different animal entirely, will do what they say on the tin in that they will apply to a particular sector. We will have a debate on that in the House over the next few weeks. Such initiatives are designed to make sure that labour standards are high and there can be proper engagement between employers and employees in a system that works for both.
4. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation his views on the disparity in job creation in spreading a balanced recovery to all regions, considering the Western Development Commission’s latest findings, that between 2012 and 2014, job numbers declined in seven of the 14 sectors in the western region, and the western region performed worse than the rest of the State in all sectors; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18468/15]
The recent Western Development Commission report points out what we all know, that there is no sense of any kind of balanced recovery happening in the economy. Between 2012 and 2014, a period the Minister likes to quote as being a growth-powered time in the economy, employment declined in seven of the 14 sectors in the western region. Across a range of headings, the western region is way behind any kind of regional recovery. The Minister mentioned the Action Plan for Jobs: Regional initiative, APJ Regional, earlier, which sounds like a new airline or something like that. He might update us on where APJ Regional is and whether it is going to take off or crash land.
The aim of the Action Plan for Jobs is to help enterprises to create employment in all regions of the country. Employment has increased nationally by almost 90,000 since the start of the action plan process in 2012. All regions have experienced job growth, but some regions have seen less than others. That is why the Government is placing an increased emphasis on supporting jobs growth in the regions.
It is clear that all regions have shown growth, in contrast to what Deputy Calleary has tried to say in his opening comments. In February, the Government announced details of the Action Plan for Jobs: Regional Initiative. It might sound like an airline but I can tell the Deputy that it will deliver on the ground, which is more important. It seeks to build on the existing strengths and assets of each region to maximise enterprise growth and job creation. This initiative will see action plans drawn up for eight regions at NUTS III level, supported by a package of up to €250 million in funding over the next five years.
The Western Development Commission’s report on the western region’s labour market will provide a valuable input into this work. Using data up to the first quarter of 2014, it showed growth in employment in the seven counties covered since the start of 2012 with a significant drop in unemployment. In particular it showed growth in employment in agriculture, professional, retail, hospitality, industry, construction and private services, but a decline in employment in public service, financial, ICT and transport. While overall jobs growth in these counties was lower than in the rest of the country, they had a stronger jobs experience in five sectors. The relative strength of these counties in manufacturing and weakness in ICT was observed. This is valuable input into the work of identifying areas of opportunity for these counties, which can be developed in the regional action plans for jobs.
As I have said, through the regional action plans for jobs we want to build on strengths and opportunities in the different regions, whether in existing or emerging sectors such as the creative industries or renewable energy, which are of particular interest to the western region. The Western Development Commission report points to the need for a more diversified spread of employment across sectors and that is what we are trying to achieve. Our objective is that six action plans including those for the Border, west and mid-west regions, which cover all the counties within the remit of the Western Development Commission, will be launched by the end of July.
During March and April, our Department and its agencies conducted a series of stakeholder engagements in the Border, west, and mid-west regions, which resulted in almost 700 suggestions for job creation being offered by participants. The Western Development Commission was involved in the stakeholder events. My Department is currently working through these suggestions and will soon be consulting further with stakeholders. It is quite important that 700----
We will come back to the Minister of State. Deputy Calleary has a supplementary question.
I did acknowledge that there was jobs growth between 2012 and 2014 in the western region. Jobs growth was 1.4% compared to national growth of 3.9%. The figures show that outward migration is still the main influence on declining unemployment. We are still being plagued with emigration. Total unemployment in the region declined by 28.4% although it is still over 40,000. However, this was mostly caused by a fall in the labour force. We have a higher share of self employment without paid employees, which accounts for 16.3% of jobs in the region and 11.4% in the rest of the State. We have a higher youth employment rate and lower labour force participation, again backing up the whole emigration side of things.
The Minister of State says that APJ Regional will be launched by the end of July. Will each plan have a budget or will each plan have to go through a tendering process for the overall pot? That would delay the impact of the delivery of the plan even further.
It is a competitive fund. What we are trying to do is work with all the agencies including the various Government agencies, chambers of commerce and other groups like the Western Development Commission. The most competitive plans with the best chance for success would show a good regional balance and co-operation. There is quite a high fund here - €250 million over five years is a reasonable amount of money to target into regional areas. While the regions can also qualify for other funds in other Departments, this fund is specifically intended to push jobs growth out into the regions. That will be achieved and the quality of the suggestions that are coming through is key. We are very impressed with what is coming through and all the forums have been quite successful.
To correct some of the Deputy's figures, since the start of the Action Plan for Jobs process, employment has increased by 8,900 in the midlands region, while the unemployment rate has fallen from 18.7% to 13.1%. Although the Deputy is right to say that some of this will be emigration, the key figure is that employment has increased by 8,900. In the western region, the number of jobs has increased by 4,000 people in employment and unemployment has fallen from 16.2% to 10.2%. There is some steady progress there although we will agree that a lot of work remains to be done.
That progress has to be viewed in the context of Central Statistics Office projections that show that by 2031, which is not that long away, the population of the greater Dublin area will account for 65% of the total population of the State. This is why the regional action plans for jobs are so important and they have to be real. The allocation of a potential €7 million a year per plan over five years needs to try to resist this pressure and increase in costs that will develop in the greater Dublin area. We would abandon employment and the economy in much of the rest of the economy if we continued to pursue this path.
The urgency of APJ Regional, as it is going to be christened, is absolutely vital. I suspect the use of a tendering process means that there will be no money flowing into any of these job plans until 2016. That is very timely for Fine Gael and the other Government party. It is my feeling that this is only an election ploy designed to try to protect Government backbenchers ahead of the general election. Can the Minister of State give me an assurance that this is not the case?
I am glad I can assure the Deputy that there will be money spent this year. We recognise the need for this. The Government has proved that the Action Plan for Jobs process has worked very successfully and has delivered nationally. That is acknowledged across the board. It brings all Departments and agencies together to focus on key areas of job creation. The regional version will try to copy that and make sure it works on the ground locally just as well.
It is a five year strategy and the money will be spent each year. The key is to get the applications in, which is happening. The meetings have worked on the ground. I do not know if the Deputy was at any of them but he is certainly welcome to go to them, as is everyone. There are great initiatives and I am very impressed by some of the applications coming through. The idea is to get regions to concentrate on where they can best achieve excellence and create jobs. The figures show that there has been a reasonable spread of jobs over the past year or two through Enterprise Ireland and IDA outside of Dublin and the main cities. We are seeking to build on that through a focus on local initiatives.
5. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation his plans to introduce legislation to outlaw zero-hour and minimum-hour contracts. [18469/15]
The recent strike at Dunnes Stores has highlighted the problem of low-hours contracts and precarious employment. Would the Minister be prepared to take action to stop this growing culture of extreme exploitation? When is the legislation from the Low Pay Commission going to be brought into the Dáil? We know that the State is now subsidising 40,000 working families with the family income supplement because their wages are so low. It is also covering 90,000 children.
Will the Minister of State give a clear indication of when we will have that legislation in the Dáil?
In accordance with the statement of Government priorities from the Tánaiste and Taoiseach last July, last February I commissioned the University of Limerick, UL, to carry out a study into the prevalence of zero-hour and low-hour contracts and the impact of such contracts on employees. The appointment of UL follows a competitive tendering process. The key objectives of the study are to fill the gap in knowledge that currently exists in terms of the hard data and information that is available concerning the prevalence of zero-hour and low-hour contracts in the Irish economy and the manner of their use; to assess the impact of zero-hour and low-hour contracts on employees; and to enable the Minister to make any evidence-based policy recommendations to Government considered necessary on foot of the study.
The study has a broad scope, covering both the public and private sectors, with a particular focus on retail, hospitality, education and health. The study will examine how zero- and low-hour contracts operate in practice and how they impact on employees. It will assess the advantages and disadvantages from the perspective of employer and employee and assess the current employment rights legislation as it applies to employees on such contracts. The study will also consider recent developments in other jurisdictions, particularly the UK. The study may also identify how the information gap might be addressed in the future to assist policy making.
A wide range of stakeholders is being canvassed to contribute to the study and I expect the study to be completed in Q3. The Deputy will appreciate that I cannot anticipate the outcome of the study or the Government’s consideration of the study’s findings in advance of receiving that report. However, the Deputy can rest assured that where the evidence points to some adjustment being required to the protections already in place under Irish employment law, I will bring these forward for consideration by the Government.
When does the Minister of State think that legislation will be brought through and the report will be finished and presented to us in the Dáil? The workers have gone on strike for a day already in Dunnes Stores because of their pay and conditions. There will also be a demonstration on 6 June. Dunnes Stores has agreed to increase wages by 3% and bring in four-week rotas, which is a step forward and has resulted from the pressure put by workers and the support they got. However, we also know there has been huge intimidation. Some 20 workers have lost their jobs, some workers have been taken from their positions and put onto tills because of the action they took and for some workers there is no point in having a 3% increase if their 20 hours are reduced to 15 hours because they will lose out in any event. These issues must be dealt with urgently. There will be more disputes if the Government does not bring in the relevant legislation to protect workers and give trade unions the right to represent those workers in a robust way which will protect them.
I hope Deputy Collins will welcome the collective bargaining legislation the Minister, Deputy Bruton, and I have been working on for some time now and which will be published shortly and made available to all Deputies. I look forward to her input on that because that is about levelling the playing field and trying to create a fairer future in the workplace. We can discuss issues around relatively modest pay increases for workers across the economy and so on, but this, and the suite of industrial relations legislation we have been working on for some time, is about trying to ensure there is a more level playing field that can transform the dynamic of industrial relations in this country and achieve the kind of things to which Deputy Collins is referring.
There may be some confusion about the role of the Low Pay Commission in regard to zero-hour contracts. There is a zero-hour contracts study going on at the moment, but the Low Pay Commission was established on an interim basis a few months ago, and will be set up on a statutory basis, primarily to look at issues relating to the annual rate of the national minimum wage, although it will also be looking at other issues. I assure Deputy Collins that I am concerned to see the rise of insecure work in any format. This is an international phenomenon and this study, which we have commissioned, is the first major study of its kind, which should give us very useful information regarding the reality on the ground and what the Government can do to ensure a fairer workplace.
I welcome collective bargaining legislation and trade union recognition. That has been long awaited by workers across the State. We know the problems would be around access to workers in their workplace. Those issues must be addressed because they are situations workers are facing at the moment. The State is subsidising big, profitable companies with a great deal of money through family income supplement. It was €224 million in 2012, €280 million in 2014 and it will be more when more people know they can access this. This is because these workers do not have enough money to live on, which the State deems they should have. Big companies, which are making huge profits, are benefiting from taxpayers subsidising workers' pay. It is crucial that zero-hours contracts be dealt with. The ratio of people in full-time work to those in part-time work was about 80:20 a few years ago and has now reversed to 20:80. It is an issue that needs to be addressed and workers must take that action to get those positions.
I thank Deputy Collins for her interest in this area. It is, however, important to acknowledge the point that the Minister, Deputy Bruton, made earlier, namely, that we have seen huge growth in full-time employment in this country over the past 12-18 months in particular, which is borne out by CSO data. The vast majority of jobs created are full-time jobs created by hard-working businesses which are contributing to this economy. I very much look forward to the findings of this report being made available to me and I assure the House that we will act where required to ensure that people's rights are protected and that their dignity at work is vindicated.
