Key Note Address by Minster for Labour Affairs, Tony Killeen, to the Plenary Session of the National Economic and Social Forum on ‘Creating a More Inclusive Labour Market’

In the Royal Hospital Kilmainham on Wednesday 19 ^th October.

Good morning ladies and gentlemen.

As you all know, over the last decade in Ireland, there has been a significant increase in employment and a corresponding fall in unemployment. The latest figures show the Irish labour force at over 2 million people with the unemployment rate standing at 4.2%, the lowest in the EU. We continue to make progress in relation to the main employment targets established by the EU. However much remains to be done, and that is why this Report is particularly timely, not only for what it can contribute to the overall debate on labour market policy in Ireland, but more importantly, in how it can shape future policy, so that we can ensure those most marginalized are helped in whatever ways are necessary, to allow them participate actively and fully in Irelands economic success.

The reality is that, there are still many people who, for a whole variety of reasons find it difficult to get jobs and progress into better quality employment. In saying that, I very much welcome the purpose of this report which is to help create a more equal and opportunity driven labour market. This can only lead to better and more positive outcomes for vulnerable people, their families and society in general.

These vulnerable people include those living in disadvantaged urban and rural areas where social and economic problems interact to create vulnerability. Unemployment is over three times the national level in these areas . To address this we need greater investment in infrastructure, more targeted active labour market and social inclusion measures and a tackling of the problem of early school leaving.

There are also those areas which are experiencing high levels of redundancies, especially in the manufacturing sector. There needs to be more upskilling and training for those people working in vulnerable sectors which are likely to experience redundancies.

The proposal in the NESF report for a National Strategic Framework, which would be developed to establish clear links at the national level between the National Employment Action Plan and the National Plan for Social Inclusion (and all social inclusion measures contained within the National Development Plan) is welcome. There are many agencies and measures in place at the local level and it is vital that they all be drawn together in a more coherent way to help the vulnerable get into work and progress in their jobs .

The idea of Service Delivery Agreements at the local level which would ensure that a one – stop service is made available is vital in ensuring that the full menu of supports are made available to people locally and that duplication and gaps in services are avoided.

I welcome the main emphasis that is given in the Report to the recognition of the value of inter- agency work at the local level and that this be recognised by Departments in the allocation of budgets. We can also learn much more by the mainstreaming of learning from the local to the national level and inter-agency co-operation can facilitate this.

Certain groups of people are also more vulnerable such as people with disabilities, lone parents and travelers. Employment rates for such people are low and measures need to be taken to increase their opportunity to participate in the workplace. FÁS and education providers need to continue to ensure equal access to services for such people.

The recommendations in the report around new Performance indicators to measure the performance of the National Employment Service will be studied to see if they can help to enhance those already in place.

As the Report says, we do indeed need to move in line with much - changed labour market conditions and the proposal for the National Employment Service to take on a more active intermediary role and follow up with low- skilled clients when they take up work will be carefully considered.

Often, it may be the small things which can help either the employee or the employer during the initial period of settling into work. The idea of the worker having a Personal Development Plan and a Mentor who can support the low – skilled worker in their occupational skills development is an interesting recommendation.

We also need to look at ways of simplifying the welfare to work system and reducing the disincentives to work that there are when people take up lower – paid employment . The idea in the NESF report of a participatory package of benefits and supports which people can retain with them when they move into education, training and work is an innovative proposal that deserves careful consideration.

As highlighted in the report, the retention of the medical card is most highly valued by parents of low – income families. We must also look at why there is a low up-take of Family Income Supplement as an income support for people with children in low paid employment.

The NESF have rightly highlighted the high costs of caring for children, some people with disabilities and the elderly, when people take up work. I welcome the proposals put forward by the NESF in their two recent reports in these areas – including the recently published Early Childhood Care and Education report and the forthcoming Care for Older People reports.

There is also a need to look at workplace strategies, both to facilitate the access of more vulnerable people into the workplace and also to help retain people already there. Our workforce, like other European countries, is getting older and it will be increasingly important to introduce strategies which will help older workers to make an important contribution. It is also important to remember that nearly 85% of people with a disability have acquired that disability, and firms need to utilise strategies which will help such people remain in the workplace.

In this age of increasing globalisation and workplace change we need a highly skilled and productive workforce. However, we have a relatively high proportion of low- skilled workers here compared to other best performing countries. We therefore also need to increase the level of lifelong learning. Some 80% of our workers will still be in the workforce in ten years time. It is important that we re-skill them now.

I agree with the sentiments of Gordon Brown the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer at this year's UK Trade Union Congress (TUC) Annual Conference where he rightly stated that economies such as China and India do not aspire to race us to the bottom. In fact, they want to race us to the top by transforming themselves into high- skilled, high technology economies. The only route for a small trading country such as Ireland is to have a more skilled workforce which can justify higher wage costs through being more productive, adaptable and innovative.

We need therefore to have a greater focus on updating the skills of low – skilled workers- so that they can move up into better jobs both within their own company and elsewhere. This will require a greater level of spending on in – company training.

There remains a problem with early school leaving which at 13% (and much higher in disadvantaged areas) is still unacceptably high. We need to look at ways of reducing this – especially in those areas where it runs as high as 50 % -60%.

The initial focus of any additional State support should include those low – skilled young people who are under 25 years of age and in work in low – skilled jobs with little training. The NESF report recommends that additional resources be focused on this area and I welcome this. The idea of an Individual learning account of €2, 000 for each young person linked to their Personal Development Plan and accredited under the National Framework of Qualifications is mentioned in the Report and we need to examine how this worked in other countries which have experience of it.

For some time now there have also been discussions around the idea that those part-time students taking third level education courses should have free fees. The NESF proposal that there should be free fees for people taking occupationally relevant courses at certificate, diploma or degree at each level, is certainly an interesting proposal in this regard.

As the NESF report indicates, we have now moved from being a country of emigration to one of immigration. It is important that we put in place an economic migration system that both takes into account our future skill demand requirements and puts in place the infrastructure to prepare for non-nationals and their families. The announcement last week of our plans in relation to a green card scheme and a revised work permit system will address this. At the same time we must as the NESF report recommends, address those barriers which are leading to the replication of vulnerability among those already resident in Ireland. We need to avoid polarisation in our society.

I would like to congratulate the NESF for producing this report. There is a strong business case for a more equal and opportunity - driven labour force approach. This will in turn lead to a more productive, higher qualified labour force, and help in turn to make our firms more productive. I hope you will have an active day discussing the report's conclusions and recommendations.

Finally, I would like to thank the chairperson of the NESF, Ms Maureen Gaffney and its Director Mr Seán Ó hÉigeartaigh for inviting me here today to make this opening address. I would also like to recognise all the work which the NESF Project Team has put into the report , under the very able chairmanship of Professor Philip O’ Connell of the Economic and Social Research Institute.

ENDS/LA142