Frank Fahey (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

The Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 came fully into effect on 1 March 1998. If an employee considers that his or her employer has contravened the provisions in this Act governing holidays, rest breaks, rest periods and maximum average weekly working hours, he or she may refer the matter to a rights commissioner for adjudication. The number of cases referred to the rights commissioner service under the 1997 Act in the period 1998 to 2003 is set out in the following table.

The labour inspectorate of my Department has a limited role in regard to the keeping of records provisions of the 1997 Act. In this connection, when inspectors pursue complaints concerning alleged infringements of other employment rights entitlements, they will also check that an employer, in accordance with the prescribed format required by the 1997 Act, is maintaining relevant records. During 2003, inspectors undertook 1,005 such inspections and the figure to date in 2004 is 360. In all of the circumstances, I am satisfied with the level of implementation of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997.

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