Emara | Island News - McCarthy Condemns Government ’s failure to Protect Cape Clear Ferry Workers

STATEMENT BY SENATOR MICHAEL MCCARTHY
Labour Party Senator for Cork South-West
Friday, 18 May 2007

McCarthy Condemns Government’s failure to Protect Cape Clear Ferry Workers

Labour Party Senator Michael McCarthy has again expressed his condemnation at the total failure of the Government to protect the employment rights of the
crew of the Cape Clear Ferry.

Up until 1st March of this year Comhair Cumann Oilean Cleire (Cape Clear Co-op.) operated the Ferry for the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht
Affairs. Four crew members manned the boat, under a contract that stipulated that the employer must abide by the European Transfer of Undertakings (TUPE)
legislation which was drafted to protect the terms and conditions of workers who transfer to a new employer when a contract is up for renewal. This means
that workers hold onto their service, pay and conditions with the new employer.

After the contract was awarded to a new contractor earlier this year, it was discovered that the TUPE clause had been deleted from the new contract by the
Department, thus stripping the workers of the protection of the legislation.

The new contractor has availed of a loophole in the law on TUPE which declares that sea-going vessels are exempt. However, the original reason for having
the exemption for sea going vessels in the EU was to accommodate international trade - not ferry services within Irish waters.”

The Senator stated, “It is my opinion that the culprit here is Minister O’Cuiv and his Department whose negligence has created this loophole, and put peoples'
livelihoods in doubt. It was the Department that deleted the TUPE clause from the contract and the blame rests with it. It is a major scandal that the
Department and our Government would encourage the use of a loophole in legislation that was drafted to protect workers within the State."

Senator McCarthy concluded, “This has devastating consequences for the workers concerned and for the entire community of Cape Clear. The Minister, who as
acted similarly to Pontius Pilate in this matter, must take immediate action to close off this loophole unless he wants scandals like this occurring across
the Country. Irish workers’ rights must be protected regardless of whether the work is carried out on land or sea. The Minister and our Government have
failed miserably in this case.”

ENDS