Address by Tony Killeen, Minister For Labour Affairs to the ILO-EU conference on the Evolving World of Work in the Enlarged European Union: Vulnerability and Social Sustainability

Introduction

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am delighted to have been invited by the ILO to address this conference. The theme of the conference is an important one, in that it is vital that we monitor the changes happening in the workplace and identify and assess the impact those changes have on all our citizens. The ILO is in a good position to highlight the new issues raised by the evolving world of work. It continues to carry out tremendous work, particularly in relation to the most vulnerable and defenceless in our global society.

One of the key challenges for Europe is to maintain and enhance its competitiveness in the face of an increasingly globalised world economy. To achieve this the Lisbon Strategy provides the blueprint for all Member States to move forward together by means of a coordinated and concerted approach. Failure to achieve the Lisbon goals is not an option and the various targets set out in the Strategy, while challenging must be met and indeed exceeded if Europe is to maintain and build on its role as one of the major players in the world economy.

Irish context

In addressing the issues here before us today I am keenly aware of how much Irish society has changed in the last 20 years. We have worked at developing a competitive economy, with a ‘can do’ approach to business creation. Our Celtic Tiger has brought major change to the Irish employment market. The crippling unemployment that was so familiar to us in the 1980’s is now a thing of the past. Ireland’s current labour market situation is very favourable with employment growth of 4.6%; an overall employment rate of 68.1%; female employment rate of 58.8%; an older workers employment rate of 53.4% and unemployment at 4.3%.

Labour supply

The main challenges facing us are to ensure the availability of an adequate supply of labour and developing a high skilled, adaptable workforce. This is being addressed through a range of measures, which are focused on activating the unemployed and inactive groups. Particular attention is being placed on increasing the participation of women.

Female participation

While the number of women in employment has increased significantly in recent years, with the employment rate up from 48.4% in 1997 to the current rate of 58.8%, there is still scope for further improvement, particularly with regard to older women. The Expanding the Workforce programme is aimed directly at women who have been outside the workforce for some time.  It focuses on the needs of the individual and aims to tailor interventions to deliver the supports in the manner, place and time frame to suit the client group.  It also aims to influence and support employers to examine and improve work practices making the work place more welcoming to women returners.  Increased female participation is also being encouraged through enhanced childcare provision under the National Childcare Strategy 2006-2010 and increases in the rates of child benefit and the introduction of the early childcare supplement.

Older workers

One of the major challenges facing Europe is the ageing of the population. This means that the size of the working-age population (15-64) will decrease and the dependency ratio will increase. This will impact across a range of areas including economic growth, employment levels, social security and health care. This is an issue, which is easy to ignore, but which will not go away by so doing. I am therefore glad to see that the issue has been highlighted by the Commission through the recent publication of the Communication on Demography. This I hope will provide the impetus for us all to address this vital issue both at the level of the individual Member State but also through a coordinated approach at EU level.

In Ireland, the employment rate for older workers is 53.4%, an increase of about 10% in ten years and exceeding the EU 2010 target of 50%. The relatively favourable demographic situation has meant that the need for undertaking reforms to strengthen work incentives for older workers has been less pressing than in other countries. Nevertheless a number of reforms have been undertaken to encourage older workers to remain in or return to the workforce. The Government raised the retirement age to 65 for new entrants to the public sector. The preventive process whereby the public employment service engages with unemployed people has been has been extended to 55-64 year olds. This has been done in tandem with the phasing out of the Pre Retirement Allowance, a scheme whereby those over 55 were not obliged to seek work. An increasing number of workers have been leaving the labour market through disability benefits and a number of schemes have been introduced to encourage employers to retain and recruit disabled employees. More generally the Pension Board is undertaking a review of the level and adequacy of pension coverage. This will also look at the reforms needed to strike a balance between the goal of improving retirement incomes and the goal of enabling older workers to continue working.

Migration

Workers are arriving into this country from Member States, Accession States and beyond at an unparalleled pace. Inward migration continues to be the main source of labour force growth. In fact this gave rise to the entry of 50,000 new migrant workers into the Irish labour force during the past year. Many of them have come from the enlarged European Union and in total the EU 10 countries now represent 4% of our workforce. They are engaged in a diverse range of economic activities but principally in construction, services and manufacturing. Poland is by far the main source of immigration but there are also substantial numbers coming from Lithuania and the Slovak Republic. As yet there are no signs of any slowdown or diminution in the numbers coming from these countries seeking work in Ireland.

The very significant level of inward migration has been a powerful driving force in the maintenance of Ireland’s unprecedented and sustained economic growth in recent years. This momentum continues to translate into substantial increases in employment. Indeed for the first time in Ireland’s history the numbers in employment now exceed 2 million. In the twelve months to June total employment grew by 88,000 or 4.6%.

Employment protections

Workplace change is critical to our continuing viability as an economy and society. In the context of all this ongoing change, we have looked carefully at the protections afforded to workers to ensure that they are sufficient and relevant in the new environment. Ireland’s comprehensive body of employment rights legislation protects employees against arbitrary behaviour by employers, provides for the health and safety of workers and fosters labour market harmony by promoting policies that minimise conflict and maximise fairness.

While a broad level of compliance with employment rights exists there is a widespread recognition that compliance with legal requirements needs to be underpinned by adequate enforcement. This requires, in addition to the proactive promotion of employment rights and enhanced inspection arrangements, the active and responsible contribution of employers, employees and trade unions. Compliance must have the active support of the Social Partners. It must educate people and promote entitlements with an emphasis on workers from overseas. Confidence in the maintenance of Employment Rights will be assured by having simple, independent and workable means of redress supported by a fully resourced inspection regime to ensure compliance.

Towards 2016

It is against this background that a major package of measures has been agreed by the parties to our recently ratified national social partnership agreement - Towards 2016. This is the 7^th national agreement since the process was initiated in 1987. It is an important and wide-ranging agreement and is testimony to the strength and durability of the social partnership process in tackling and finding solutions for shared problems. The industrial relations environment, for example, has been transformed. Prior to social partnership, an annual average of over 317,000 days were lost through industrial disputes in the 1980s, compared to less than 27,000 days in all of 2005. This has been critical to our success in attracting increased investment.

The package of employment rights measures provides for enhanced public confidence in the system of compliance. This New Compliance Model seeks to maximise the effectiveness of the substantially increased compliance effort and simplify the adjudication and redress mechanisms available in the employment rights area. The general approach of the new compliance model is that matters be resolved at the level of the workplace where possible; that interactions between employers and employees and trade unions be supported by the enhanced employment rights promotional and educational efforts directed at them; and that initiation and ownership of cases will rest with the complainant, insofar as possible.

The package of measures will include the establishment of a new statutory Office dedicated to Employment Rights compliance, a trebling of the number of Labour Inspectors, together with more staffing resources for the adjudicative bodies. The Government is committed to increasing the staffing resources of the Employment Rights Bodies generally. This will support the accelerated processing of cases through the adjudication and redress system. Statutory protection is also being provided for employees who, in good faith, make a complaint. No matter how good a compliance system we have there will always be instances where issues require to be resolved – fairly and quickly – as such matters are often harmful to the individual and damaging to employment relationships. I am particularly pleased that the new compliance model has found favour with the Social Partners as it will not only be effective in promoting compliance but will also retain the fairness and impartiality so necessary while providing for ease of understanding and use.

The new employment rights compliance model will be supported by more intensive promotion of employment rights, obligations and entitlements to employers and employees and to workers from overseas in particular. The Social partners and other organisations will be invited to bring their knowledge and networks to bear on the design and delivery of this education and awareness programme. This will include a publicity campaign, with an emphasis on workers from overseas and on the sectors in which they are employed in significant numbers, setting out their rights in a range of languages.

Much employment arises because of procurement by the State of construction services particularly to meet national objectives. The Towards 2016 deal marks the agreement between the Social Partners that contracts for such services should reinforce Employment Rights standards and facilitate compliance. This is a comprehensive and coordinated response by all parties to ensure that all people working on such projects whether they be employed by the main contractors or sub-contractors, get the agreed terms and conditions while meeting requirements for competitive tendering and value for money.

Agency workers

The changing patterns within the Irish Labour Market in recent years, with many migrant workers coming here to work, have brought an increased risk of exploitation not only in terms of employment rights generally but also in relation to the initial facilitation and establishment of such workers. This is particularly the case in regard to agency workers who may be employed outside the State and who come to Ireland to fulfil a contract.

New legislation to be published before the end of this year will reinforce the existing system of regulation by requiring that all employment agencies established and/or operating in Ireland hold a licence. It will also put in place a statutory Code of Practice covering standards of behaviour for employment agencies. Compliance with the Code of Practice will be a condition of licensing. The terms of the Code will be developed in dialogue with the parties to the agreement and other relevant interests, and will have regard to ongoing discussions and developments at EU level in relation to posted workers and the Draft Services Directive.

Collective redundancy situations

The partnership agreement also provides for an agreed structured response in the event of situations of exceptional collective redundancies. This demonstrates the resilience and capacity of Social Partnership to act responsibly in situations which could be damaging to good Industrial Relations and responds to widespread public concerns while being mindful always of the necessity to ensure sustainable employment and conditions.

In order to ensure that redundancies are in fact genuine as opposed to situations where workers are simply replaced in the same job by new workers performing the same tasks at lower wages, legislation is currently being drafted in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment to set up a Redundancy Panel in accordance with the agreed terms of Towards 2016. Both the employers and Trade Unions will be represented on the Panel, which will enable the Labour Court give an opinion as to whether or not proposed collective compulsory redundancies are in fact genuine, without any replacement or displacement effects. The new legislation is expected to provide for an enhanced level of awards in cases where proposed redundancies are found by the Court not to be genuine. The proposed new arrangements will not interfere with normal and legitimate business activity, where these specific circumstances do not arise and will not become a normal feature in the conduct of industrial relations but, rather, should only be used in these exceptional circumstances.

Migrant workers

A central conclusion of a recent report by the National Economic and Social Council in Ireland on Migration Policy is the importance of labour market policy. The success or failure of migration depends, to a significant extent, on how well the labour market works for both migrants and Irish citizens. The employment permits system, which supports labour market policy, also has an important contribution to make in the protection of individual worker’s rights and supporting employment standards.

The Employment Permits Act 2006 puts in place a statutory framework within which a responsive, managed and skills-based immigration policy can be implemented and introduces important new protections for migrant workers.

The Act provides that an application for a Green card or Employment Permit may be made by either the employer or employee; but in all cases the Card or Permit will be granted to the employee. This ensures that workers are aware of their status and should lead to a reduction in the numbers becoming undocumented. Employers are also prohibited from deducting recruitment expenses from the remuneration of employees. An employer who contravenes any of the provisions of the Act is guilty of an offence and may be liable for fines and/or imprisonment.

Other protections prescribed in the Act include a prohibition on the retention by employers or persons acting on their behalf, of personal documents of the employee, including passport, driving licence or identity card; the requirement that permits should contain a statement of the entitlements of the migrant worker including their remuneration, their right to change employers, and any deductions for board and accommodation; and the requirement that permits should be accompanied by a summary of the principal employment rights of the employee. It is intended that the new economic migration arrangements will take effect in early January 2007.

Other employment rights measures

As part of the comprehensive package of Employment Rights, following on a review undertaken by the University of Limerick on behalf of the LRC, the Joint Labour Committees, which establish terms and conditions for a range of sectors, will be modernised. Furthermore, it is a reflection on the extent of change in Irish society that the Social Partners have agreed to the development by the LRC of a code of practice for people employed in other peoples’ homes.

Of more interest to the generality of people was the provision in Towards 2016 for the Social Partners to make a joint recommendation to Government as to the amount of the increase in the National Minimum Wage to take effect on 1 January 2007. The Labour Court is currently engaging in a consultation process as part of its examination of the issue.

Life-cycle approach of the Agreement

The national agreement also sets out a vision and long-term goals for Children, People of Working Age, Older People and People with Disabilities.  It also highlights a number of particular challenges, including, for example, the integration of migrant communities, the acute needs of children in disadvantaged communities. These are not goals that can be achieved during the usual three-year agreement. Accordingly, the Government and the social partners recognise that a ten-year framework agreement is more appropriate for the type of social dialogue that can be effective.

In the area of those with disabilities, the Department’s Sectoral Plan was published at the end of July this year. It outlines the key initiatives of the Department in promoting equal opportunities for disabled people in the employment market. These include the development of a Comprehensive Employment Strategy for disabled people. Key pillars underpinning this strategy will be enhancing the effectiveness of employment and vocational training programmes for disabled people, and further developing supports for the employment of disabled people.

The Plan also provides for the establishment of a new Consultative Forum on the Employment Strategy. The Forum will provide a channel for members to put forward their views on broad strategic issues that directly or indirectly impact on vocational training and employment.

The key to the success of the Irish partnership model is that it is flexible enough to recognise the wide diversity of situations in employments across the economy, while providing a framework of confidence that is effective in guiding not just wage setting, but all aspects of the employment relationship, in the right direction.   Similarly, the concerns that were so widely and publicly voiced in Ireland last year about the potential for displacement and a race to the bottom in the labour market, evoked the genuine and passionate concern of many thousands of workers and citizens.   Even though the instances of grave concern about exploitation and unreasonable behaviour affected only a small number of employments, we needed mechanisms that provide confidence about decent standards and fairness, without compromising flexibility or adding unreasonably to the burdens of regulation of the labour market.  That delicate balance requires the active engagement of all of the parties to our employment system. 

The successful implementation of the new system of employment rights compliance and the national agreement in general sets challenging targets for us all; the Government, employers, employees and the Social Partners alike. I am confident that we can all respond positively to these challenges.

National Workplace Strategy

In recognition of the importance of workplace change to our economy and society, the Government launched an integrated National Workplace Strategy in April last year. The Strategy evolved from a tripartite Forum on the Workplace of the Future, which assessed the readiness of Ireland’s workplaces to meet the challenges of our emerging knowledge economy. The National Workplace Strategy is the government’s blueprint to transform Irish workplaces into ‘Workplaces of the Future’, and build a highly competitive, innovative and knowledge-based economy.

I chair the High Level Group charged with overseeing the implementation of the Strategy and we have been working to support and drive workplace change and innovation. The Strategy focuses on five key strategic areas: Commitment to workplace innovation; Capacity for change; Developing Future Skills; Access to Opportunities, and Quality of Working Life. All of the key workplace issues agreed in the national partnership process are supported and coordinated by the Strategy.

The Strategy highlights the importance of developing a high quality of working life for employees. In the context of tough global competition for inward investment, the quality of working life experienced by Ireland’s workforce will remain an issue, in that the ability to attract foreign direct investment depends in part on maintaining a dynamic and motivated workforce, which in turn depends on successfully and innovatively managing the involvement, health, safety, and general wellbeing of the workforce.

At enterprise level, the ability to provide a high quality of working life distinguishes an employer of choice from its competitors, and contributes significantly ot the success of an employer in recruiting and retaining staff. Future employees will increasingly come from the ranks of older people, women and migrants. Proactive engagement between management, unions and employees on the quality of working life can underpin high performance organisations with strong capacity for workplace innovation.

Work Life Balance

Increasingly, for a wide range of people the ability to enter into or to continue in paid employment is dependent on the availability of opportunities to balance work and life outside of work. The Irish Government is committed to a two-pronged approach to achieving the goal of making workplaces more family friendly by (1) the provision of statutory entitlements through legislative measures, many of which have their origins in the EU, and (2) 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.

In relation to the voluntary approach at the level of the enterprise, our experience in Ireland is that the work life balance agenda cannot be progressed without the inclusion of the social partners and change will not be effected without them. The model in Ireland is one based on social partnership and the remit of the National Framework Committee was defined and has been extended under various national agreements.

At European level, the Commission has launched the first-stage consultation of European social partners on the reconciliation of professional, private and family life. The European Social Partners will address a broad range of questions concerning this issue and I look forward to hearing their views in due course. It is clear that one of the key questions here is how can the best balance be struck between the costs and benefits - for both individuals and companies - of measures permitting reconciliation of professional, private and family life.  

Progressing the work life balance agenda presents a complex set of challenges for policy makers, social partners and families. These challenges, both social and economic, do not necessarily dovetail with each other. We do, however, need to take a holistic approach if, on the one hand, we wish the EU - as envisaged through the Lisbon Strategy - to become a reality and, on the other, we wish to meet the needs of the EU population in terms of creating the economic conditions to ensure quality employment opportunities for all. How we decide to progress this agenda into the future will have a significant impact on the Europe we hand on to our children and grand children.

Training and Learning

In my view, training and learning are the keys to developing individual potential, enabling people to meet the demands of change in their workplace and to contribute to their ongoing employability and ultimately to the continued success of our economy.

We know that if we are to maintain and further enhance our living standards in today’s increasingly competitive environment, we have to respond flexibly to emerging global opportunities and challenges. The days of Ireland competing for investment on the basis of the availability of large numbers of low cost workers are behind us. Fundamental changes in the global business environment are emerging which present exciting new opportunities and some formidable challenges.

We have a vision of an Ireland where future economic success is strongly influenced by our ability to take and maintain our place in innovative, high-added value, knowledge-based sectors – sectors that are critically dependant on the skills and adaptability of their workers. Although the 2005 report of the National Competitiveness Council pointed out that Ireland was close to OECD averages in terms of labour market training, there was a need to focus additional attention on the training needs of those in employment. The fact that the majority of the 2020 workforce are already working today makes the training of those in employment all the more important.

The Irish Government is acting to ensure that the potential of our workforce is maximised and that it is equipped with the right skills to support the vision of a knowledge-based innovation driven economy. A preparatory study, which will be published shortly, will identify the skills profile and needs of the economy in the period to 2020. On foot of this important work, the Department will then publish its National Skills Strategy to set the strategic agenda for the period to 2020.

In advance of this Strategy being published, the Government has already shown its commitment to lifelong learning by providing additional resources for training people in employment. Increased funds have in recent years been provided to a number of programmes to support the One Step Up Initiative through the training of those in employment. These include significant increases to national training initiatives for the employed, to the Skillnets Training Networks Programme, to the Department’s own in-company programmes. These increased funds are allowing these programmes reach greater numbers of workers.

Specific funding has also been made available from the National Training Fund for dedicated training programmes that support the continuing professional development of engineers, of those in the ICT sector and those working in the community and voluntary sector. The Department of Education and Science is also increasing their investments in the area of Further and Adult Education.

These increases mean that there has never been such a concentration of public funds devoted to training and skills development and the situation is to improve further. The new partnership agreement articulates the parties’ acknowledgement of the need for a concerted effort to increase the levels of workplace learning and upskilling and the commitments made to workplace support will be actioned over the period of this programme.

Concluding remarks

We can see that ongoing change in the global marketplace has produced consequent changes in employment conditions and patterns. Employees are increasingly required to be more flexible, more mobile, work longer hours, have shorter contracts.

Employers are increasingly reporting on their corporate social responsibility in the areas of the environment and consumers. Sustainability is also needed in the employment area. Investment in training, work-life balance and quality of working life activities will, I believe, pay off in terms of long-term as well as immediate rewards. Irish Government policy is committed to supporting sustainable employment practices.

Social Partnership in Ireland has resulted in an agreement that represents a shared vision and an agreed framework for Ireland's continuing success in meeting its ambitious economic and social objectives. The Government for its part will live up to the commitments being entered into which will enable Ireland to become a dynamic, internationalized participatory society and economy with a strong commitment to social justice where economic development is sustainable and internationally competitive.

I look forward to hearing the other speakers and wish you all an enjoyable two days.

ENDS

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