Labour Party leader Pat Rabbitte has written to the Taoiseach today seeking an explanation as to why Irish Ferries will receive €4.3 million in compensation for redundancy payments to more than 500 Irish staff.
The Irish employees were replaced last year with eastern European workers on significantly less pay amid a controversy over an alleged "race to the bottom" in employment standards.
The compensation is being paid out under provisions of the social insurance scheme that allow companies to claim back 60 per cent of the cost of statutory redundancy payments.
In his letter, the Labour leader states that the purpose of the statutory redundancy payments scheme is to compensate workers whose jobs no longer exist.
"The Government should pay a rebate only in situations where the strict criteria stipulating genuine grounds for redundancy under section 7 of the Redundancy Payments Act 1967 . . . are applicable," he says in the letter.
"The former Irish Ferries workers were in insurable employment and would have been covered by the Redundancy Payments Acts if there was, in fact, a true collective redundancy.
"But if an employer continues to carry on the business in which those employees had been employed, but does so with a newly recruited workforce, how can that constitute a collective redundancy?" Mr Rabbitte asks.
He demands an explanation from the Taoiseach as to why an Irish company has been given public money to subsidise its displacement of its indigenous workforce with cheaper staff recruited overseas.
He says that the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment had sought and obtained preliminary advice from the Attorney General's Office on the issue a year ago.
"Minister of State Tony Killeen told the Dáil this advice was to the effect that redundancies as proposed by the company may not fall within the definition of the legislation.
"At some stage in this process, the Government or its Attorney General or both were persuaded to change their mind on this question. I believe the taxpayers of this country are entitled to be told why," Mr Rabbitte says.
Meanwhile, Irish Ferries today announced the purchase of a vessel to replace the Normandyon its Ireland France route for €45 million.
Currently under the name the Kronprins Harald, the vessel will remain in operation with Norwegian ferry operator Color Line until the summer.
Irish Ferries expects to take delivery of the vessel, which it describes as "more luxurious" than the Normandynext October. A new name for the 32,000-tonne cruise ship has yet to be decided.
The company's marketing director Tony Kelly said the new acquisition will be "bigger, better and faster than the vessel it will replace, with greater car and freight capacity, more berths and a wider choice of stylish cabin accommodation".
The 11-deck vessel will carry up to 1,458 passengers and 580 cars. It will als have greater freight capacity.