The best way for getting early results in generating jobs is for larger semi-State companies to undertake specific labour-intensive infrastructural projects, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions has said.
In a letter to the Taoiseach Enda Kenny, the general secretary of Congress David Begg said the companies should finance these projects themselves.
"These companies already have the financial strength, management capacity, geographic spread, administrative infrastructure and procurement capability to move quickly. It is worth thinking about," he said.
Mr Begg's letter formed part of a submission made by congress to the Government in advance of its new jobs initiative to be announced next week.
In its submission, which was published this afternoon, congress said that without a clear policy focus and investment stimulus to create jobs and generate domestic demand, "the current austerity policies will drive us into deep depression".
It recommended the Government should significantly increase the scale of its capital expenditure programme.
Congress also argued commercial State companies should be brought within the scope of an overall State holding company and that this should be used to leverage the individual companies' aggregate assets for borrowing. This money could be used to major investment stimulus programme for jobs "within and outside these companies and also in partnership with private firms".
Congress has also urged the Government to change the rules to the way public bodies decide on tenders for the supply of goods and services. This would involve ending the principle of accepting the lowest price and requiring public authorities to concern themselves with maximising employment and the working conditions of the employees carrying out the operation.
It said a labour and social factors such as those related to job stability, decent working conditions and respect for collective agreements, rates of pay and conditions in the sector and labour law should be included as a criteria in awarding a contract.
Congress also suggested companies that had been involved in serious breaches of certain employment legislation should be "explicitly excluded" from public procurement.
In a separate document submitted to the Government, congress also called for the establishment of a new skills agency "which would embody the best aspects of the old ANCO, providing a wide range of courses through work-based learning".
