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

The debate may be going off on the wrong tack somewhat. The fixed payment notice is not for non-payment of the minimum wage. The case of an employer who is found not to have paid the minimum wage will be prosecuted as a criminal offence and the worker will have rights in respect of the wages he was due.

The fixed payment notices are for more minor offences and they are to be issued by the inspector. They are instruments under several provisions, in particular, section 11 of the Protection of Employment Act, which provides a requirement on an employer to consult with employees and the Minister in respect of collective redundancies. They may also be issued under the Payment of Wages Act, which requires the provision of a payslip. This Act refers to the employer's obligation to provide an employee with a written statement of his average hourly rate of pay. These more minor offences are dealt with by a fixed payment notice under a summary procedure that is carried out by the inspector. The inspector can issue the notice. Then, when it is paid the requirement is met.

The cases that the Deputies have described, in which employers have systematically failed to pay the minimum wage, are offences and would be prosecuted. However, I do not believe it would be appropriate to have an inspector effectively making an adjudication and imposing a €20,000 fine for these offences. Under our system, the jurisdiction to make such decisions lies with the administration of justice, as set out in the Constitution. Those functions are the reserve of the courts. That is the backdrop to the issue. The €2,000 fine is for more minor offences, somewhat like issuing a traffic ticket. That is the category we are dealing with. The type of cases the Deputies have described would be pursued as criminal offences.

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