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seasonal employment permit, which is being piloted this year. This year will also see the expansion of the regime to reduce the gender pay gap. The Employment (Contractual Retirement Ages) Bill 2025 was published on 1 April 2025 and successfully completed Second Stage in the Dáil on Tuesday

years. At the same time, the work has not finished. I know things need to be done. We need to close the gender pay gap. We must invest in more skills and apprenticeships. In this country there is a huge need for them. Workers are needed across

workers' rights. As of 2024, Ireland continues to align its labour laws with EU directives, particularly in areas such as remote work, gender pay gap reporting and platform work protections. Today is a day to reflect on where we need to go and the challenges that remain

childcare is not available or affordable in a family. We know that countries that have proper support for parents have better gender equality, smaller pay gaps and better outcomes for children and their parents. We also know that the solutions are in front of us. This motion calls

OECD country. Childcare fees in my county of Kildare far exceed the nationwide average of €790 a month. Parents in Kildare pay an average fee of €850 a month, with the highest fee in the county standing at €1,154. Despite core funding promising to reduce costs, working … model cannot operate on its own; it needs to be backed up by increased family leave entitlements to ensure we address the gender care gap between men and women, promote the involvement of more men in caring duties and support women's labour market participation. We have

Independent Ireland firmly supports the principle that no worker should be left unpaid if a business ceases trading. The Bill addresses a significant gap in our law, highlighted by the 2018 Supreme Court ruling, and ensures that employees of small and medium enterprises, including sole traders, are protected … providing unpaid wages, holiday pay, notice pay, and more. This process helps employees avoid being trapped in limbo due to legal technicalities. We need to remember too that employees are left devastated when they lose their jobs. They have rent or mortgages to pay as well as childcare

eight weeks each. When a claim is accepted, payment is made from the Social Insurance Fund to the liquidator. The liquidator in turn pays out to the employees. Access to the insolvency payments scheme is contingent on the employer being insolvent. Insolvency is currently defined … died and their estate is insolvent, or is insolvent under the laws of another EU member state or the UK. However, there are gaps in the legislation that the Bill intends to address. In rare cases, a business may cease trading but fail to fully wind up. This

serving the interests of parents, children or providers. It is in serious need of investment and adequate funding. Parents are paying the equivalent of a mortgage for services. In some cases, they cannot access childcare even if they could afford it. My office in Swords responds every … significant obstacle to gender equality, economic participation and the overall well-being of our children. Sinn Féin remains committed to a public model of childcare. We would deliver childcare at a cost of €10 a day by giving subsidies to providers to bridge the gap between the actual

payments scheme but it is coming late. I welcome that it will cater for the situation at present regarding wages, sick pay, holiday pay, minimum notice entitlements and pension contributions. While they are in the insolvency payments scheme, workers lose out where the employer does not deem itself … gap in the scheme to ensure that employees of former sole traders in insolvency arrangements as defined in the Personal Insolvency Act 2012 will now be covered by the scheme; the amending of the Employment Equality Act 1998 to ensure that any court awards for gender discrimination

would have expected. I understand that things have changed slightly and, in Galway, we got a new president who sorted out the gender inequality cases. We remember the Sheehy Skeffington book and the three conditions. The new president sorted that out. Unfortunately, he left early and is gone … more time on that. Nonetheless, as a society, we need to discuss what our universities are there for. We need to bridge the gap that exists between town and gown, as it was called in Galway, so the universities are open to everybody. As the House knows