FORMER Minister for Agriculture Ivan Yates says the racing industry needs to wake up to the threat posed by left-wing politicans who will use this week’s Labour Court case involving Ballydoyle Stakes to damage the sport’s reputation in the corridors of power.

Yates, a former bookmaker, breeder and owner, who is now a prominent columnist and media personality, remains a close follower of racing and the political scene.

Speaking to The Irish Field yesterday, Yates said: “There has always been a left-wing element in Irish politics which is negatively disposed towards the sector. They have railed against the Government subsidy for racing and it will be no surprise if they focus on the working practices in racing as a way in which to further their agenda.”

In the Labour Court this week the common practice of stable staff working extended hours and deferring days off during busy periods came under scrutiny. At the heart of the issue is the change in legislation made in 2015 which saw ‘agricultural worker’ status removed from racing industry employees.

The amendment was not noticed by most in racing and in May 2016 the Workplace Relations Commission carried out an inspection at Ballydoyle Stables and found the employers to be in breach of the law. Compliance orders were served and these were contested by Ballydoyle in the Labour Court this week.

They argued that their racing operation was inextricably linked to Coolmore Stud, which is an agricultural enterprise. In his evidence trainer Aidan O’Brien said it was common for staff to report for work even on days when they were not rostered, such was their connection to the horses he cared for.

Regardless of the outcome, Yates believes that employees in racing and breeding should be treated similarly: “There has to be flexibility in this industry. The public want to see racing on a Sunday and I’m sure it’s the same in the sport horse sector. But when you’re dealing with the law, you have to be savvy. Racing should engage some industrial relations experts to help them resolve this dispute and retain the current practices in a modern context.”

Yates can foresee the issue becoming a political and industrial relations football in the lead-up to Budget 2018. “The level of trade union membership is falling fast. Increasingly it is the preserve of the public sector. Unions are looking to grow their numbers and that involves having industrial relations victories.

“In this case they will be looking to apply modern industrial working practices to an industry which is unsuited to it. Racing needs to wake up to these cross-currents. These are issues that will be decided by forces outside of the sport – by politicians, the WRC and state machinery. I think Horse Racing Ireland has a role to play here and they would be well advised to spend some money talking to consultants about how to counter this development.”

He opined that the racing industry’s political lobby has not made a big enough effort to get into mainline media. “Racing has not been attuned to the middle ground populist opinion. They tend to be introverted and talk to each other. They can get blindsided by issues such as this. Inside, there is an absolute consensus that common sense must prevail but outsiders see racing as a pyramid with wealthy owners and fewer trainers at the top who can afford extra costs.”

Yates believes that racing can survive the storm which is coming. “It’s all retrievable. HRI should step forward to explain how the industry works on behalf of smaller employers who don’t have the resources. You can’t turn a blind eye to the dialogue. Irish society is becoming more urban every day, whether country people like it or not. We have to face up to that reality.”

COMPLIANCE NOTICE

Aidan O’Brien spent almost two hours giving evidence at the Labour Court on Monday. The trainer appeared on behalf of Ballydoyle Racing Stables, which is appealing a compliance notice served by the Workplace Relations Committee [WRC] over alleged infringements of the Working Time Act at the Co Tipperary yard.

Mr O’Brien spoke passionately about his interest in the welfare of Ballydoyle staff and of the workers’ commitment to the horses they cared for. “Some of them are so attached to their horses that they want to report for work on their days off,” he said. “It would be offensive to refuse them. At Ballydoyle we want to comply with all the legislation and we always put people first. All I want is the flexibility to be able to allow people to come in and look after their horses if they want.”

The trainer spent most of his time on the stand answering questions from Noel Travers, senior counsel for the WRC. Mr Travers asked Mr O’Brien why Ballydoyle could not employ more riders so that staff were not required a seven-day week, with a day and a half off every fortnight.

Mr O’Brien replied that continuity of care was very important in dealing with high-performance thoroughbreds and the feedback received from exercise riders was vital. He said he took great care in assigning a groom and rider to each horse, matching the employees’ personalities with the horses’ behaviour.

The trained accepted that occasionally changes of groom and rider were unavoidable but that this increased the likelihood of an accident. “It’s all about knowing your partner. The relationship between a rider and a horse is almost telepathic. It takes a lot of the danger out of it. The risk of an accident becomes much greater if you change the people involved.”

O’Brien also emphasised the close links between Ballydoyle and Coolmore where, it is understood, there are no issues over employee working hours.

Sylvia Doyle, the employers’ representative on the three-person panel hearing the case, also put questions to Mr O’Brien. After she had established that no horse breeding or livery takes place at Ballydoyle, Ms Doyle put it to the trainer that it was a health and safety risk to have an employee looking after horses who had worked up to four weeks without a day off. Mr O’Brien agreed that rest periods were vital and indicated that the employee being referred to was a special case, a person who lived on-site and had specifically asked to be allowed work every day.

When told that he was in breach of the law, the trainer said he is now complying with the legislation but now receives phone-calls from partners of employees who tell him how upset the staff are at being prevented from working.

Also addressing the health and safety issue, panel member Jerry Shanahan informed the trainer that the Working Time Act is there to protect employees. “There is a requirement on everyone, no matter what their industry is, to comply,” he said. “You have been served with compliance notices instructing you to reconcile your business with the legislation. This is regardless of what your staff want or don’t want to do. This is what the law says.”

Earlier Mr O’Brien said it was not unusual for exercise riders to ask if they could accompany ‘their’ horses to the races, and he often accommodated them on Ballydoyle’s private plane. It is thought likely that Ballydoyle will appeal any adverse finding to a higher court.