Paul Murphy: Calls for Legal Workplace Ventilation Standards
Paul Murphy spoke in support of the People Before Profit Workplace Ventilation Bill, arguing it gives workers the right to fresh air and legally enforceable ventilation standards. He urged immediate action on CO2 limits, mandatory air monitors and rapid enforcement by the Health and Safety Authority.
Background on the bill
The People Before Profit Workplace Ventilation Bill would require employers to ensure proper ventilation in workplaces, setting CO2 limits as an objective proxy for air quality. The bill follows the example of Belgian law and empowers workers to request inspections by the Health and Safety Authority (HSA).
CO2 limits and enforcement mechanism
The bill sets two CO2 thresholds - over 900 parts per million to trigger an improvement notice and over 1,500 parts per million to trigger a prohibition order. Improvement notices would give companies 24 hours to rectify ventilation; prohibition orders would close workplaces until levels are addressed.
Problems identified in schools and workplaces
Paul Murphy highlighted long-standing deficiencies in ventilation before and during Covid, citing that five out of six schools reported inadequate ventilation and that many classrooms still lack air quality monitors. He contrasted this with the State of Victoria and Australia installing purifiers in every classroom and pressed for investment in CO2 monitors and HEPA filtration for classrooms, bars, restaurants and offices.
Worker rights and workplace organisation
The bill would allow the HSA to issue rapid enforcement orders and, in extreme cases, close workplaces where air quality presents an immediate danger. Murphy argued this measure must be paired with stronger workplace organisation and trade union rights, including inspection and recognition measures, to ensure sustained health and safety protections.
Parliamentary progress
The motion for leave to introduce the bill was not opposed and was agreed. Paul Murphy moved that the second stage be taken in private members' time, advancing the proposal for further parliamentary consideration.
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The People Before Profit Workplace Ventilation Bill is a very straightforward measure, giving workers the right to fresh air at work and requiring bosses to ensure that there is proper ventilation. With Covid we have seen just how important this is, but in fact the need for proper ventilation was there long before Covid, and will continue after Covid hopefully passes. Poorly ventilated workplaces not only expose workers to many viruses and illnesses, poor air quality can also lead to drowsiness, headaches and fatigue. The bill sets clear limits for CO2 levels in the air, over which bosses have to take action to improve ventilation or face prohibition notices and other penalties. It is a very basic issue of workers' rights of health and safety, and it is long overdue. For over a year, we and People Before Profit have been raising again and again the shocking lack of effort being put into ventilation in our schools, in our offices, in our bars, in our restaurants. For over a year, over 18 months at now, the Government has been burying its head in the sand, with still no legally enforceable standards for workplace air quality. We have long known at this stage that Covid is airborne and proper ventilation can dramatically reduce chances of it spreading. But still, as things reopen, as we re-enter winter and people move indoors, we have not taken action to ensure proper ventilation in workplaces. When I questioned the Taunashta about this in a committee in July, he initially tried to claim that there were standards for workplace air quality, before finally admitting that he was, quote, not sure there are any legal standards on ventilation. And there is not. Last September 2020, I raised the leaders' questions about the shocking lack of proper ventilation in our schools, with five out of every six schools reporting inadequate ventilation. A year on, we still do not even have an air quality monitor in every classroom. We do not have a plan for an air quality monitor in every classroom, never mind proper HEPA air filters. The State of Victoria and Australia are installing air purifiers in every classroom, yet we cannot even provide a 70 euro CO2 monitor to classrooms here. Along with this bill, we need to put the investment in now to provide every classroom with air monitors and to require every bar, restaurant and office to have air monitors and to ensure that workers are not forced to work in unsafe environments. Our bill effectively follows the example of Belgium in establishing minimum standards for air quality. Workers are empowered to request an inspection by the Health and Safety Authority. If air quality is found to be lacking, the HSA will issue rapid enforcement orders to improve ventilation and, in extreme cases, can close a workplace until proper ventilation or air filtration is put in place. In line with Belgian law, our bill sets two limits on CO2 levels, over 900 parts per million. The HSA then issue an improvement notice, which gives companies 24 hours to improve the situation. If, however, the levels are over 1,500, present an immediate danger to people, and then a prohibition order is issued until the levels can be addressed. The law also allows for the rare cases where CO2 levels may be above 900 parts per million, but other air filtration measures such as HEPA filters would be in place, which would make it relatively safe. Just to explain, I mean, CO2 monitoring effectively acts as a very useful proxy for air quality and ventilation in general. If you have proper ventilation, your CO2 levels are going to be relatively low, and viruses such as COVID cannot build up in the air. That is why it is used as the the relevant proxy. Just to conclude, we need to pass this law. This is vital for workers' health and safety. But ultimately, what we need, we saw it in terms of the meat factories in particular, what we need a strong workplace organisation fighting trade unions to be able to ensure health and safety of workers at work. Our proposal in terms of the workplace ventilation bill should be seen as part of a whole series of proposals from people for profit, including our trade union recognition bill and our call for unions to have full rights to inspect workplaces and to meet workers on site. Thank you. Is the bill being opposed? No. It is not being opposed, so the motion for leave to introduce is agreed. Deputy Murphy, will you move that the second stage should be taken in private members' time? I so move.
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