Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The offences in respect of which a fixed charge notice may issue, as set out in subsection (5), are relatively minor. The three "relevant offences" are those under section 11 of the Protection of Employment Act 1977 which relates to the requirement for an employer to consult employees' representatives and the Minister on collective redundancies; section 4(4) of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 which relates to an employer's obligation to provide an employee with a pay slip; and section 23 of the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 which relates to an employer's obligation to provide an employee with a written statement of his or her average hourly pay.

My concern in regard to Deputy Peadar Tóibín's amendment is that doubling the maximum fee would be excessive. I am taking advice on whether it would be appropriate to issue regulations setting out guidelines as to the appropriate monetary amount of notice in specific circumstances. The overriding concern in practice is to ensure consistency in the application of this section and its provisions. We are retaining the full weight of enforcement for more serious offences; this particular subsection, which sets out the fixed notice approach, might be seen as akin to how one deals with more minor traffic offences. The nature of the offences dealt with curtails the level of fine we are considering.