A universal payment of £10 a week will be given to parents for children under five if the social partners sign up to a new national agreement. Government representatives made the offer during talks on social inclusion measures last night.
The payment would provide a substantial boost to low-income families. Existing child benefit is £4.50 a month. However, it was unclear last night whether the payment would be taxable.
About 40 per cent of children belong to families living below the poverty line, and the measure, which has been strongly supported by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, will help to sell the package to low-paid groups. Another significant breakthrough for the low-paid has been a commitment by the Government to introduce legislation by next June making occupational pension schemes for part-time workers mandatory. At present the vast majority of part-time workers are excluded from such schemes.
Other measures aimed at protecting the most vulnerable elements in the workforce are planned. These include amendments to the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act to introduce new sanctions against stress and bullying in the workplace. Legislation will be introduced next October.
There will also be legislation to protect people on short-term contracts. However, this will not be introduced until 2002.
Talks were continuing last night, with draft texts on issues such as access to lifelong learning and new measures to tackle longterm unemployment being discussed.
There are understood to be continuing differences between the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the community and voluntary sector on the nature of labour market initiatives. The sector is seeking a written commitment that placements on Community Employment schemes must not drop below 28,000. Officials are understood to be refusing to give anything but verbal commitments.
The social inclusion package is expected to be agreed today at a cost of more than £1.3 billion. This will clear the way for the full agreement to be put out for ratification by all the social partners. The crucial group remains the ICTU. Many trade unionists are disillusioned over the failure of the December Budget to tackle low pay and are dissatisfied with the meagre flat-rate offer from the employers.
Emmet Oliver adds: The nonpay element of the agreement includes provision for at least 1,500 extra teachers. The two teachers' unions represented at the talks, the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI) and the Irish National Teachers' Organisation, are likely to lobby hard to get the bulk of the 1,500 teaching posts. Mr Jim Dorney, general secretary of the TUI, said he would be looking for an "equitable solution" to the question of allocation.