Ollie Crowe (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

My thanks to the Minister of State, Deputy English, for his detailed briefing. Like most Members I welcome the legislation. It will ensure proceedings and investigations before adjudication officers of the Workplace Relations Commission comply with constitutional requirements associated with the administration of justice and that hearings before the adjudication officers can resume in full.

The Workplace Relations Commission is a vital resource for workers and we must ensure it remains so. From my experience in Galway, the majority of the time employees do not want the intrusion. Senator Currie alluded to this. Yet, it is still a major support.

The Supreme Court has identified areas that fall short of proper administration of the permissible justice and this legislation is required to address that issue. The first point is that holding all cases entirely in private is inconsistent with the overall administration of justice. The Supreme Court was highly critical of the fact no provision was made in the statutory framework for the adjudication service. The service provides for the administration of an oath or affirmation and an associated penalty for a person who may wilfully give false evidence or mislead an officer. Naturally, there may be a material dispute of the facts.

As Members are aware, there is a backlog of more than 300 cases due to the second issue identified. It is important we resolve both areas identified by the Supreme Court so that we can have a fit-for-purpose Workplace Relations Commission. It is vital the commission does the job it is supposed to do. It is welcome the Workplace Relations Commission had continued to schedule cases. I hope the backlog that has built up will be addressed in the short term.

It was vital and important the Government moved swiftly to ensure the commission continued to function after the Supreme Court ruling last April, and it is welcome it has done so. We need to keep this reviewed. I see how it works in practice, especially in terms of all cases no longer being held entirely in private.

Under the legislation, the officer whom the complaint or dispute is being referred to may use his or her discretion to direct that either the whole or part of the relevant proceedings can take place otherwise than in public where it is desirable in light of the nature of circumstances of the case or in the interests of justice. The default position in respect of such proceedings is that they would be held in public. The legislation provides broad guidance on the nature of the considerations that the officers should advert to in determining whether a private hearing would be desirable but the guidance does not set out specifically confined terms to provide the person dealing with the case with no discretion. There is limited discretion.

It is essential both employees and employers retain confidence in the Workplace Relations Commission. We will need to see how this works in practice and potentially make adjustments if needed. The Minister of State has alluded to this. This clearly needed to be addressed following the view of the Supreme Court.