Employers will be obliged to enter collective bargaining discussions under legislation to be introduced after Easter and passed before the summer recess, Tánaiste Joan Burton has said in the Dáil.

A recommendation by the Labour Court in such cases can be enforced by the Circuit Court under the proposed Bill, she told Fianna Fáil’s Billy Kelleher.

Ms Burton was speaking after heated exchanges in the Dáil on Thursday as more than 5,000 Dunnes Stores workers placed pickets on its 109 outlets in the State in a one-day strike over guaranteed hours, job security and trade union membership.

The Tánaiste, a former employee of the company, had called on management at Dunnes Stores to engage with the industrial relations machinery in the row over zero-hour contracts. But Opposition TDs said the reason for the strike was because management would not engage with the workforce.

Zero hour contracts operate when an employee is available for work but does not have specified hours of work.

Mr Kelleher said Dunnes Stores had not listened to the Taoiseach who called for the company to engage with the State’s industrial relations machinery.

The Fianna Fáil TD later asked if legislation would deal specifically with zero hour contracts and what would happen in cases where an employer refused to engage.

Ms Burton said that under the proposed Bill, where there is a case similar to Dunnes stores and the employer does not engage with the State’s industrial relations machinery, “the court can make a recommendation under the proposed collective bargaining legislation which can then be enforced by the Circuit Court”.

The Tánaiste pledged to introduce collective bargaining legislation after Easter, which would be passed by the summer recess.

The Bill will also include anti-victimisation clauses “to overcome the understandable fears of the workers who may have taken strike action”.

‘Regrettable’ strike

Fianna Fáil whip Seán Ó Fearghaíl suggested that if the Tánaiste or the Taoiseach were to “lift the phone to Mrs Margaret Heffernan you might do more than any legislation”.

Ms Burton described the strike as “very regrettable” and said the way to settle it was through the State’s industrial relations machinery.

Sinn Féin deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald highlighted the case of two Dunnes Stores workers who sometimes could not buy food for their child because they had no security of hours with the company and could not claim family income supplement because their 15-hour flexi-contracts were spread over five days.

She hit out at the Government for failing to bring in promised industrial relations legislation, despite being in office for four years.

Ms Burton reiterated that the Bill would be in the Dáil after Easter and she called on Sinn Féin to support it. The Tánaiste said there were 32,000 workers in the North on zero-hour contracts and Sinn Féin in Government changed its position from banning such contracts to applying regulation.

But Socialist Party TD Paul Murphy said: “If Marie Antoinette says let them eat cake, the Tánaiste says let them wait for collective bargaining.”

He said “it’s worthless” for Ms Burton to call on the company to engage with the industrial relations machinery.

Mr Murphy said that in opposition Labour called for a full transposition of the EU directive on part-time work. He said the party could do that immediately and it “would make a real difference to Dunnes Stores workers right now”.

Ms Burton asked if Mr Murphy would support the collective bargaining legislation when it came into the House and the Socialist Party TD asked her in turn if she would accept amendments from the Opposition to strengthen the legislation.