Ms Jane O'Sullivan:

It is certainly an advantage to the new system in the WRC. However, if somebody is faced with the termination of his or her employment for an unfair reason and is taking a case, he or she is still not entitled to any civil legal aid and representation at the outset of that case. I find with people who come to our services through one of our outreach clinics that the costs and final outcome of the case are quite remote for them at that time. As for accessing what can be a very difficult process to get through, for example, in an equal status case or an employment equality case, there is an obligation on the individual who is taking the case to make written submissions in advance of the case. The case is front-loaded in that way.

Employment law is a massively technical area and often engages difficult concepts in European law. That in itself is a barrier. I accept that the WRC being a no-cost environment is one advantage but, for me, the intimidation begins at a much earlier stage and the advice or representation is required at that earlier stage. Often in our advocacy work we might assist somebody in writing the initial letters and sometimes there is no need to progress with litigation and end up in the WRC. Sometimes a letter to an employer setting out the infringements can resolve the situation at an earlier stage.