Wage reform laws to be drafted in autumn, says Bruton

LEGISLATION TO reform wage-setting mechanisms in low-paid industries will be drafted in the autumn, Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton said yesterday.

Labour Party TDs and Senators who are concerned that the measures will disproportionately affect women and immigrants voiced their fears at a meeting with Mr Bruton yesterday. The Cabinet will discuss the issue on Tuesday.

The joint labour committee (JLC) mechanism sets pay rates for workers in hotels, catering, security and other sectors and includes overtime payments and premium rates for Sunday working.

Mr Bruton said it was important that the Coalition partners could debate the issues involved. He described the meeting in Labour’s parliamentary party room in Leinster House as “worthwhile”. Asked if he believed Labour would support his proposals, he said he did.

“I don’t view debate about proposals that are going to government as undermining. We have an open, democratic system, we have to talk about these issues. They are important reforms. Obviously reform is difficult – if it wasn’t, it would have been done years ago.” Mr Bruton said the concerns of individuals in the Labour Party expressed at the meeting “gives a sense of the balance that needs to be struck” in framing legislation, which would “come forward in autumn”. He added: “I believe that we can find ways of dealing with the Sunday trading issue that doesn’t involve the very restrictive way that it’s now being dealt with, and that’s what I’m determined to do.”

The chairman of Labour’s parliamentary party, Jack Wall, said Mr Bruton had indicated he would take what he had heard at the meeting on board ahead of next week’s Cabinet meeting.

“The meeting was very positive and provided Labour TDs and Senators with an opportunity to put forward constructive suggestions as to how reform of the JLC/REA [registered employment agreements] regulatory system could be tackled fairly and equitably,” Mr Wall said.

Among the Labour TDs who addressed the meeting were Emmet Stagg, who said Mr Bruton had undertaken to take “genuine views expressed into consideration when preparing his memo for Government”.

Alex White said the matter was “a work in progress”. Others who attended the meeting included Joe Costello, Joanna Tuffy, Gerald Nash, Brendan Ryan and Colm Keaveney.