Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)

While I appreciate what the Minister intends to include in the guidelines about conciliation, I do not understand his reasoning in rejecting this amendment. It appears to me to be typical Civil Service-speak, in that he cannot accept this because there is no sanction and no oversight. However, no one is worried about sanction or oversight. Were an incorrect comparator to be used, the sanction would kick in down the line when someone took a case after a lengthy wait for the rights commissioner. I am trying to avoid a scenario in which someone would be obliged to approach that overburdened and understaffed authority and in which the sanction can be avoided. I refer to a scenario in which the employee will not be obliged to go to the trouble of approaching that body and the sanction for the employer would be avoided because the mistake would be pointed out to the latter, who will be given 14 days in which to correct it. As this will work in many cases, I cannot discern the logic of the Minister's response when he states there is neither sanction nor oversight. The entire idea is to avoid a sanction down the road and the consequential overuse of the already heavily burdened rights commissioner or the State's industrial relations machinery.

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