Gino Kenny: Defends Migrant Workers' Rights in Agriculture
Gino Kenny spoke on 25 November 2021 about protections for migrant workers in the meat processing, horticulture and dairy sectors and endorsed a bill to strengthen their employment rights. He said the bill would allow employment permit holders to switch employers after six months and expand access to sick pay, addressing exploitation highlighted during COVID.
Attendance and tone
He criticised poor attendance by other TDs at the debate and described the circumstances as surreal, while praising OPLA and colleagues in his party for their work on the bill.
Main provisions of the bill
He outlined the bill's core measures - enabling workers on employment permits to change employer after six months and improving access to sick pay - saying these would reduce situations where workers are effectively tied to an employer.
Sectoral impact and figures
He said the bill focuses on the meat processing, horticulture and dairy sectors. He noted the meat processing sector’s large economic value and said about 70% of workers in that industry are migrants, mentioning that the sector alone is worth 4 billion euros to the US economy.
COVID examples and exploitation concerns
He cited outbreaks during the pandemic, including a meat processing plant in Clendarkin where sick workers sometimes felt they had to keep working. He warned that migrant workers can be badly paid and exploited and argued the bill would provide needed protections.
Unions, solidarity and wider consequences
He commended unions for organising in difficult workplaces and stressed solidarity across nationalities - "an injury to one is an injury to all." He argued stronger rights for migrants would strengthen the labour movement and reduce employer exploitation.
Appeal to the minister
He criticised the minister’s record of opposing similar bills and urged reconsideration, expressing hope the minister might one day vote in favour.
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Thanks, Chair. Thanks. Probably won't need all that. Slightly kind of surreal circumstances, because I normally wouldn't moralise in relation to attendance kind of debates, but this is pretty pathetic, I have to say. It's really, really poor attendance from other TDs, so it's kind of a pity now, I have to say, because it's obviously a very, very important subject. Minister, I just want to first of all thank the fantastic work of the OPLA and others in our party in relation to this bill. I think it's a very, very, very good bill, a very timely bill, and as Deputy Byte Barrett has said, migrant workers were kind of, there was a light shined on them in relation to COVID, and they suffered very, very badly in relation to the circumstances and environments that they have lived in. And the basic rights of workers in relation to this bill, the composition of workers is in the meat processing, horticulture and dairy sectors. And these sectors are worth an enormous amount of money. The meat processing sector alone is worth 4 billion euros to the US economy. And out of 70% of those that work in that industry are migrants. So that is a big chunk of people, mainly from Eastern Europe and some parts in Brazil, that will come to Ireland to live a better life and work. And we should know all about all about our Irish people, went all over the world, and were terribly exploited in some cases, really badly exploited. But through that, people, you know, workers organised themselves, regardless of what your nationality, they organised through unions, through strikes, and that kind of cross the kind of the borders of jingoism and racism, and all that kind of divides people. Where the ruling class tried to divide people, where the ruling class tried to divide people. But when you are a worker, it is almost irrelevant what your nationality is, if you have a bad employer. So that is good. And I want to commend the unions in this country that have tried to organise workers in this sector. It is a very difficult sector to organise because of the nature of the job. But I want to commend the unions. Just the main trust of the bills is in relation to employment permits and giving workers a right to switch employer after six months. I think that is very, very important. Because workers are sometimes like, I suppose, latter day kind of slavery, where workers are tied to an employer. And that goes on, Minister, where workers are brought to this country, and they are employed for a certain amount of time. And, you know, they are almost like a serf, almost. And I think that is very, very important. And also access to sick pay. I think that is very, very important. As was highlighted during COVID, workers that were really badly sick. And I know this because there was actually a meat processing plant in Clendarkin, where workers were very, very sick. Some had to, in some ways, had to still go into work in relation to, you know, their condition, because they had no kind of backup, and they had to go into work. And that is a pretty, a pretty dire situation. So just to conclude, I think, as I said, I think this bill is a really, really good bill. It shines the light on migrants in this country that play a huge, positive part in relation to Ireland. And in the last 25 years, migrants have transformed this country into a kind of, you know, welcoming country, you know, a kind of country that kind of welcomes people, regardless if you are in an urban environment or a rural environment. Because workers were going into places that, you know, mostly foreign migrants weren't going into because of the nature of the job. And they work very, very hard. They love Ireland in some cases. But there are cases, Minister, and there's no get away from this. There are cases where migrant workers are extremely badly paid, badly exploited. And that has to be addressed. Now, I think this bill does address them issues. It goes further than what the government are saying. And I think migrants have to be protected. Because what's important in all this is that migrants, regardless of your nationality, they're workers. They're like workers, Irish workers. Because an injury to one is an injury to all. And if an injury is done to one worker, then that's an injury to another. And what has made the labour movement and trade unionism very, very strong is that togetherness where, you know, if a worker has been exploited, where if a worker has been put down, that togetherness is put to the employer. And that's what has been the driving force of the labour movement. Regardless of your nationality, it's where workers come together in solidarity. And, you know, where there's exploitation, they address, they challenge that exploitation. So, Minister, it's unfortunate because every time you're in front of us, you're saying no to these bills. Hopefully one day you will say yes. But it's unfortunate that you're saying no in this case. But hopefully you might think again. Thanks. Thank you. Thank you. Thanks.
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