1. Review of current labour disputes reform programme at a national level in Ireland.
Introduction
Talk about
New Body
Why Set Up
Need for Such Bodies
Take you through standards required
What we did procedurally – how we are doing
Outreach
Peter Healy Adjudication Officer
Workplace Relations Commission

6. Need for Reform: Problems with Previous System
This is what happens in a system that is place for a few decades
Like bits added on to a house over time – eventually you get lost
Fluent english? – 1 day still wouldn’t get it
Shows employment rights and industrial relations channels 18 months ago
system evolved over a long period of time in a piecemeal fashion in response to EU and domestic legislation and the changing nature of employment.
Meant to be informal, accessible and speedy - extremely complex and protracted
Took too long to navigate and cost too much – employers and employees needed professional help to know where to go let alone be represented
Multiple complaint channels
Different fora to attend to obtain redress with 100 forms to choose from
Function overlap
Complaints statute barred by going to the wrong one
Different practices, procedures and different time limits
No consistency around degree of formality of hearings, rules of evidence and the extent of use of adversarial vs. inquisitorial procedures
Delays are excessive weeks

7. Old Institutional Framework
NERA
LRC
EAT
EqT
Labour Court
Information Provision
Industrial Relations
Complaints
Employment Equality
Compliance
Conciliation Mediation Advisory Training
Unfair Dismissal Minimum Notice Redundancy Insolvency
Investigation Adjudication Mediation
Referred: LRC Direct
Employment Rights
Appeals
Employment
Rights
Rights Commissioners
Some Rights Commissioner Decisions
Equality Rights Commissioners
Enforcement
Five Bodies
Rights Commissioners – overlap with EAT
Appeals to EAT or Labour Court or direct to High Court
Mediation in a couple of places

8. New Institutional Framework Workplace Relations Commission
Director General
Chief Operations Officer
Information and Customer Service
Adjudication Services
Conciliation, Facilitation, Mediation, Advisory
Compliance and Enforcement Services
Legal Services
Corporate
Clearer
IR disputes – individual and collective - to Conciliation/Mediation
Employment Rights to Adjudication
From complainant point of view – doesn’t matter – all to WRC
NERA became compliance and enforcement
Boosted information provision

9. A little on this – pre set – Board and stakeholder engagement
Rule of law – procedures – appeals – enforcement – redress, penalty, imprisonment

10. Adjudication Post-Establishment of WRC
Procedures
All complaints under ER/Equality legislation adjudicated upon at first instance by WRC Adjudication Officers
All appeals dealt with by the Labour Court
Appeal to High Court on a point of law only
Enforcement of decisions via the District Court
Benefits of “new” system
Single body dealing with all complaints
Shorter waiting times for hearings (3 months)
Standardisation of procedures and time limits
More informal and less legalistic
17/09/2018

11. Adjudication Officers
Current Panel of Adjudicators:
Existing Rights Commissioners
Existing Equality Officers
External panel of Adjudicators
Initial selection and recommendation to Minister by Public Appointments Service
Accredited training programme for Adjudicators (NCI)
5-year term for adjudicators
Minister appoints to WRC panel (S.40 of WRA 2015)
Currently a total of 35 Adjudication Officers
17/09/2018

12. Adjudication Adjudication Officers (35) Internal (5) and External (30)
Five Year Contract for External Adjudicators/Long-term for core cadre
Problems: Availability
Consistency
Quality
IR ER, Legal
Problems: Availability
Consistency
Quality

13. Powers of an Adjudication Officer
Section 41 of WRA 2016
Power to inquire into a complaint
Power to compel witnesses to attend hearings
Power to compel person to produce documentation
Power to make a decision and award redress
Section 42 of WRA 2015
Power to dismiss a complaint that is frivolous or vexatious
Powers of Inspectors.
Section 94 of EEA 1998
To enter premises
To require production of material
To require access to records
To inspect and take copies of material
To inspect work in progress.
17/09/2018

14. The Oral Hearing
S.41 of WRA 2015 requires that parties to a complaint entitled to be heard by Adjudication Officer
Both parties required to attend oral hearing
Opportunity for Parties to present evidence relevant to the complaint
Parties entitled to representation (solicitor, barrister, trade union official etc.)
Hearings held in Private
17/09/2018

15. The Court’s functions can be divided between
Operation as an industrial relations tribunal, hearing both sides in a case and then issuing a Recommendation setting out its opinion on the dispute and the terms on which it should be settled.
those relating to the determination of appeals in matters of employment rights.

16. Administrative reform.
Same administrative procedures a common ICT system and staff, managerial and corporate support services.
Some 190 staff in November 2015 began the development of a new corporate identity.
Joint services for the WRC and the Labour Court put in place in a manner that does not in any way compromise the independence of either body.
Applying similar corporate governance structures to both bodies will greatly assist the efficient and effective management and delivery of these joint services.
As both bodies will be established as offices of the DJEI, good governance requirements can be met with fewer resources.

17. Information and Customer Service
Information on rights and entitlements
information relating to employment rights, equality and industrial relations matters by means of a telephone service manned by experienced Information Officers,
design and production of informational booklets, leaflets and other literature relating to employment rights, industrial relations and equality,
management of the Workplace Relations website,
seminars etc.
the provision of information to relevant parties regarding the status of complaint and dispute referrals.
What do we offer
Telephone, website, publications, seminars

18. Information Service

19. Information Service

20. Information Service

21. Advisory Service Workplace Training
Joint problem-solving preventive interventions
Promotes good practice
assisting and advising organisations
develops effective industrial relations practices, procedures and structures
grievance, discipline, communications and consultation.
Mending damaged workplace relationships post-dispute
Collective involving many staff, or individual.
Fixing serious and pervasive problems around cohesion, adversarialism and morale.
Workplace Training
Improve knowledge and skills
Workplace procedures,
Communications
Dignity in the workplace
Support in the management of workplace change
This is our primary preventive service
Core cadre of staff – bring people from Divisions as needed based on skill sets
Promoting good practice, structures and procedures, codes of practice
Post dispute – LUAS
Training in the workplace and seminars

22. Conciliation, Mediation, Facilitation
Conciliation Resolving collective disputes – mainly trade union
Local, sectoral, national, private and public sector
Mediation and Facilitation Early Resolution Service (ERS) in less complex cases
Mediation in more complex cases (Equality and Unfair Dismissal)
Voluntary
No loss of right to adjudication or inspection
Binding terms - actionable in court
Could be collective in non-dispute scenarios
Collective disputes – trade union
Local to national
Of late increasingly involved in ad hoc public service disputes as economy improves
Mediation
Conciliation/Mediation Service
Industrial Relations Referrals:
Conciliation Conferences:
Other Meetings (Mediation/Facilitation, etc.)

23. Adjudication Three into One!
Adjudication Officers Hear first instance complaints submitted on-line – one complaint form
Six month submission period (12 months for reasonable cause)
Papers submitted beforehand
Pre-outline of case
Hearing in private
Representatives allowed
Inquisitorial
Appealable within 42 days
Ultimately enforceable (Labour Court to District Court)
Decision within five months of complaint
This is the big ticket item in terms of savings and efficiency and structural and procedural reform
Three bodies now one – the LRC, the EAT, the EqT,
One body – one complaint form
Six month submission period (12 months for reasonable cause)
Papers submitted beforehand
Pre-outline of case
Hearing in private
Representatives allowed
Inquisitorial
Appealable within 42 days
Ultimately enforceable (Labour Court to District Court)
Decision within five months of complaint

24. Compliance and Enforcement
Regionally Based
monitor employment conditions to ensure compliance
statutory and sectoral pay, working time, terms and conditions
enforce employment rights legislation
redress for the employees concerned and
payment of any unpaid wages
penalties
Compliance Notices
Steps employers must take to rectify contraventions
Fixed Payment Notices
€1500-€2000
Scheduled offences (minimum wage, payment of wages)
Appeal to the Labour Court
Failure to pay - District Court
Regionally based
Emphasis on compliance – working with employers
Put them on notice about what they need to do – pay, records, payslips, working time
Then prosecute
Fixed Payment

25. 17/09/2018