1047. Deputy Sinéad Gibney asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment whether his Department will engage with an organisation (details supplied) on the pattern of mass redundancies in the tech sector in Ireland and the continued practice of tech companies of not engaging or recognising trade unions in their workplaces; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57486/26]

It is important to note that there is a robust legislative framework in place which provides important safeguards for employees who may be impacted by collective redundancies. These rules are set out in the Protection of Employment Act 1977, as amended.

Under the 1977 Act, an employer proposing collective redundancies must first undertake a 30-day information and consultation process with the employees’ representatives and also notify the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment of the proposed redundancies at least 30 days before the first dismissal takes effect.

Under the 1977 Act, the employees’ representatives are defined as:

(a) a trade union, staff association or excepted body with which it has been the practice of the employer to conduct collective bargaining negotiations, or

(b) in the absence of such a trade union, staff association or excepted body, employee(s) who are elected by a group of employees to act as their representative.

This approach reflects the fact that Ireland’s industrial relations system is based on a voluntarist model, which recognises employees have the right under the Constitution to form associations and trade unions and that employers also have the right not to recognise trade unions for collective bargaining purposes.

On 5 November 2025, I launched Ireland’s Action Plan to Promote Collective Bargaining, a comprehensive strategy aimed at strengthening the country’s well-established system of voluntary industrial relations, one of the first countries in the EU to prepare such a plan.  While other countries waited to see the outcome of a European Court of Justice decision on the Adequate Minimum Wage Directive, I was committed to delivering a plan and decided there was no need to await the European Court decision before doing so.

The Action Plan is an ambitious one, with more than 20 actions to be delivered over the duration of the plan, including advancing a research base, building capacity and skills for trade unions and representative organisations and their members, and other measures to support collective bargaining.

A Technical Sub-Group of LEEF - our Labour Employer Economic Forum - consisting of my Departmental officials and the Social Partners are meeting regularly to progress the implementation of the Action Plan. Overall, implementation is progressing well, with good momentum evident across the actions prioritised for delivery in 2026.

The Action Plan will be delivered on a phased basis and supported by a robust monitoring framework, including a mid-term review scheduled for 2028. This phased and responsive approach will ensure the continued relevance of the Plan in the context of evolving labour market conditions and the collective bargaining landscape. The Plan is available on my Department's website at https://enterprise.gov.ie/en/publications/irelands-action-plan-to-promote-collective-bargaining-2026-2030.html.

Furthermore, the technology sector has undergone a period of sustained growth for over 20 years. Where job losses have occurred, in most cases this has been part of a global reorganisation or action. In many cases, Ireland has endured a smaller impact on a proportional basis, and the impacted skills are highly transferrable.

Government has published strategies which help to position Ireland internationally for investment, including the Government Action Plan on Market Diversification and IDA Ireland’s latest strategy, “Adapt Intelligently: - A Strategy for Growth & Innovation 2025-2029”. Government is focused on delivering the objectives outlined in these strategies.

These objectives are important in the implementation of the recently published National Digital and AI Strategy, “Digital Ireland- Connecting Our People, Securing Our Future”, which outlines a whole of government approach to position Ireland as a European and global leader in digital innovation.

IDA Ireland has established internal processes for dealing with potential and actual job loss situation with its client companies, including those in the tech sector. In the event of any announced or pending job losses, IDA partners with other support agencies at a local level to implement the Job Loss Protocol. This provides a coordinated response by relevant Government Departments and agencies at a local level to support impacted employees. The types of supports that may be provided include:

• Provision of a detailed skills profile for the site; a talent catchment map and timings for when individuals will be available, provided by the company.

• Identification of other employers who may be hiring across IDA and EI client companies.

• Sharing of skills profiles with other companies who may be hiring and direct engagement with HR departments, when appropriate through IDA and EI.

• Briefings by local Department of Social Protection/Intreo officials to impacted employees on social welfare and employment support services to support impacted employees’ transition to new employment opportunities.

• Identification of training and further education opportunities for employees (ETBs; Skillnet; Universities).