Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

With the greatest of respect, if the Code of Practice on Determining Employment Status was doing all that the Minister of State thinks it might be doing, I genuinely would not be here now. I would have a fighting chance of catching my train, which, I think, I will miss, and I would be gone home. That is not sufficient. Clearly, pursuing the matter for 13 years in the courts shows that it is not sufficient. The Department would not have pursued this matter though the courts if there was already a code of practice in existence that would sort it out. The code of practice does not encompass all eventualities, which is why we have workers who, this evening, tomorrow, the next day and in the following days, will find themselves in a situation where they are trapped in what some people like to refer to as the gig economy.

I have other names but I will not say them here. Bogus self-employment is in every sector. It is found in certain parts of the public service and semi-State bodies. It is found in universities and is particularly prevalent in construction. The winners are those employers who seek to get around the rights and entitlements of workers while the losers are the workers.

It is incumbent on the Government to legislate in light of this judgment. It is a landmark judgment that is seismic in that it has the capacity to deliver great change, but this requires action on the part of the Government. I am perfectly happy to bring forward that legislation. I would like the Government to work with me. In his reply, the Minister of State said the Government is committed to stamping out the practice of bogus self-employment. I am not trying to put words in his mouth as I do not have his reply in front of me. The practice of bogus self-employment is obviously not supported by the Government but the Minister of State is in a unique position as a Minister to be able to do something about it and bring forward that legislation and enact it. I do not think anyone would say the code of practice will be sufficient with the workplace changing and the labour market moving in the way it does.

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