I welcome the recent announcement that SIPTU and Fórsa members employed in the community sector organisations funded by the Department of Social Protection have voted to accept the pay rise recommended recently by the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC. I am even happier to see that the Government has committed to engaging in a mechanism for the workers to negotiate future pay rises. This is a welcome step along the road to collective bargaining for the sector and a good win for the unions involved. To my mind, it also provides a template to resolve the outstanding issues concerning pension provision in this sector. This is what I want to focus on today.

In Donegal, I have been contacted numerous times by Tús and rural social scheme workers close to retirement who need clarity on this issue. It is obvious that representatives of the Departments responsible for social protection and public expenditure must sit around the table with funders and representatives of the unions to move this matter to a conclusion. The unions are willing, as are the employer bodies. Will the Government commit to engaging in tripartite negotiations involving the unions this year to ensure this is resolved?

Coming into government, this was an issue I was very focused on and concerned about to improve the situation for those in community employment schemes and the sector. We have made progress, as the Deputy outlined. There are ongoing issues. Obviously, it will fall to the Department of Social Protection and the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform to resolve them through engagement. That is a process we will engage in.