Labour has called for the introduction of two more public holidays over the next five years to bring Ireland into line with most other EU countries.
Enterprise spokesman Ruairí Quinn, who in 1994 introduced the May public holiday, said it was Labour policy to increase the number of such holidays, from nine to a European average of 11.
Minister of State for Labour Affairs Tony Killeen believed, however, that "workers value the flexibility of their own entitlement to holidays in many respects more than public holidays".
He pointed out that public holidays did not emerge as an issue in the recent detailed social partnership talks and this was the "appropriate forum in which such matters can best be considered". Mr Killeen said it would involve looking at the impact "on the competitiveness of firms, in particular small and medium enterprises with smaller workforces".
Mr Quinn said, however, that structured public holidays could "create business, employment and local tourism opportunities that do not currently exist" and he was "flabbergasted" that the Minister was effectively saying that "since the social partners did not raise the issue, we should not discuss it".
Calling for two more public holidays over the next five years, "in the context of family-life balance", the Labour TD said this would mean "that across the 12 months of the year we would have a long weekend to which families could look forward, when grandparents and grandchildren could meet up".
Referring to the October public holiday introduced by a former minister for labour, the late Michael O'Leary, he said this "resulted in among other things, the jazz festival in Cork and the Dublin city marathon".
The Labour TD commended "the people of Cork who brought forward the jazz festival but they chose to take a window of opportunity, a public holiday weekend. Dublin City Council did likewise when Noel Carroll initiated Dublin city marathon. On one occasion 15,000 people were running the city marathon, creating a buzz and opportunities for employment and wealth creation."
The "public holiday concept is one around which we can build festivals and celebrations of any kind across the city. I ask the Minister of State to reconsider the issue in the dying days of this administration."
Mr Killeen replied that Mr Quinn was "setting the bar somewhat high with his requirements for the next public holiday, whenever it is announced".
