Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I move:

That, pursuant to Standing Order 177, Standing Order 131 is modified to permit an instruction to the Committee to which the National Minimum Wage (Low Pay Commission) Bill 2015 may be recommitted in respect of certain amendments, for which it has power to make provision in the Bill in relation to:(a) the Workplace Relations Act 2015 and employment rights and equality enactments, which are of a technical and drafting nature, which are required to ensure that the transitional arrangements and new adjudication and redress structures arising from the establishment of the new simplified two-tier adjudication structures are legally robust; as a result it will be necessary to introduce amendments to sections 76, 80, 81, 83 and 84 of the Act;

(b) these amendments to the aforementioned sections of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 will also result in the requirement to make consequential amendments to the Redundancy Payments Act 1967, the Unfair Dismissals Act 1977, the Protection of Employees (Employer's Insolvency) Act 1984, the Employment Equality Act 1998 and the Equal Status Act 2000 and the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994;

(c) technical and drafting amendments to sections 1, 2, 28, 40, 41, 53, 74, Schedule 3 and Schedule 4 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015;

(d) introduce a number of additional provisions in the Act to provide for a range of technical and transitional issues consequential on the transfer of functions from the Director of the Equality Tribunal to the Director of the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) - these amendments provide, for example, for the transfer of property, rights and liabilities etc. which were vested in the Director of the Equality Tribunal to the Director of the WRC upon commencement of sections 83 and 84 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015; and

(e) the Freedom of Information Act 2014 to ensure that the exemption from the FOI legislation which currently applies to the Equality Tribunal insofar as it relates to its mediation functions will be extended to the WRC upon commencement of the Workplace Relations Act 2015; the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform has agreed to the extension of the current exemption to ensure that it will cover records of the WRC Mediation Service insofar as it applies to its functions in relation to the resolution of complaints and disputes on a voluntary basis under both equality and employment enactments;and to change the title of the Bill and make other consequential amendments required to take account of the changes above."

Deputies will recall that I indicated on Second Stage that I would introduce these amendments on Report Stage. I understand that Deputies have received an information note setting out the purpose of these amendments.

As Deputies will be aware, my colleague, the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Bruton, has been implementing a programme of reform of the State's employment rights and industrial relations procedures and institutions since 2012. His aim is to establish a world-class workplace relations service and employment rights framework by streamlining the existing mechanisms and establishing a simpler structure while building upon the recognised strengths of the existing systems.

The reform programme is at an advanced stage and the legislation that will give statutory effect to these reforms, namely, the Workplace Relations Act 2015, was signed into law by the President on 20 May. The Minister has announced that the WRC will commence on 1 October 2015.

The effect of the Workplace Relations Act, when it is commenced, will be to replace the five existing workplace relations bodies with two. The Labour Relations Commission, the National Employment Rights Authority, the Equality Tribunal and the first instance functions of the Employment Appeals Tribunal will be replaced by the new Workplace Relations Commission. The appeals functions of the Employment Appeals Tribunal will be incorporated into an expanded Labour Court. The cost of running these bodies will be reduced through the better use of technology and shared services, staff reductions, the elimination of duplication and the centralisation of administration and case management services. This rationalisation will deliver a much better service to end users, including employers and employees, at a reduced cost to the State.

Significant progress was achieved in advance of the enactment of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 in the technological, structural, administrative and staffing changes required to underpin the workplace relations reform programme. I will mention the measures that have been already put in place. The Equality Tribunal has been transferred from the Department of Justice and Equality to the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation in anticipation of becoming part of the Workplace Relations Commission. A single contact portal and a post registration unit have been established to deal with all aspects of case management as far as complaints are concerned. A single workplace relations complaint form and e-complaint facility has been launched. A single workplace relations website has been designed and launched. A single adjudication and appeals decisions database has been designed and launched. An early resolution service has been established. The selection process for an external panel of adjudicators and an accredited training programme for adjudicators has been completed. The selection process for two new deputy chairs of the court has been completed. Enhanced technologies and business processes, including the completion of the procurement and design of a customer relationship management solution, have been implemented.

Work will proceed at an accelerated pace over the coming months to make progress with a comprehensive programme of work to ensure our workplace relations services are business-ready for establishment day. This includes the preparation of regulations relating to critical procedures, the finalisation of arrangements for the introduction of compliance notices and fixed charge notices in support of inspection activities, the transitioning of e-business, the phasing out of information and communications technology systems in line with the rationalisation of services and the implementation of the proposed customer relationship management solution to support complaints and adjudication management. Key senior management positions will be fully aligned with the new structure and processes.

As Deputies are aware, the Workplace Relations Act is complex. When it is commenced, its effect will be to replace the five existing workplace relations bodies with a new simplified two-tier structure. The Act will also result in the establishment of new structures for the resolution and adjudication of complaints and disputes across the entire corpus of employment rights and equality legislation. As a result of the introduction of these new structures, it has been necessary to make consequential amendments to 24 primary Acts, 34 specified parts or sections of Acts and numerous statutory instruments. As part of the technical and complex drafting process, it became clear following the enactment of the Act as certain technical legal elements were worked through that a number of technical and drafting amendments would be necessary to ensure the smooth running of the new structures. As a consequence, it is essential that these amendments be effected before the commencement of the legislation and the establishment of the new structures on 1 October 2015. It is proposed that the aforementioned amendments to the Workplace Relations Act 2015 will be inserted into the National Minimum Wage (Low Pay Commission) Bill 2015 as a new Part 3 of that Bill.

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