The employers organisation, IBEC, was today accused of attacking worker protection legislation and of adopting the "virtually the entire political agenda of the Progressive Democrats".
The Labour Party condemned the Irish Business and Employers' Confederation's call to halt the "plethora" of regulations designed to protect workers.
At the launch of IBEC's document Social Policy in a Competitive Economy, in Dublin yesterday, director-general, Mr Turlough O'Sullivan said workplace legislation "should only be introduced as a last resort" and a voluntary code of worker protection was much better.
Referring to the nineteen pieces of legislation introduced since 1993, Mr O'Sullivan said: "If we were to replicate the same amount of legislation in the next 10 years, we'd have a very inflexible workplace."
However Labour’s spokesman on enterprise, trade and employment, Mr Pat Rabbitte said today: "The fact is that Irish workers enjoy a lower level of social protection than workers in most other EU countries."
He accused the PDs leader and Tánaiste, Ms Mary Harney, of "foot-dragging" over the implementation of necessary directives to protect the rights of workers.
Mr Rabbitte, while agreeing with IBEC’s conclusion that the biggest cause of stress for workers was the lack of childcare, questioned the organisation’s attack on his party’s child care plan. Labour proposed to fund its childcare programme by reversing the decrease in employers PRSI.
Mr O’Sullivan said yesterday enterprise thrived "through the free movement of people, goods, capital and ideas", but "excessive regulations and restrictions" stifled them.