Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 448: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the procedures in place for officers of his Department employed as managers of employment exchanges; the terms of employment; the person who has responsibility for employment of staff or the cessation of employment of staff; the disciplinary procedures in place in view of incorrect procedures being carried out; the grievance procedures available if a persons employment is terminated without fair and adequate procedures being carried out; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38501/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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My Department currently has 65 Branch Offices located at various locations throughout the country. Each Branch Office is managed and operated, under a contract for services, by a Branch Manager who is required to act as an Agent for the Department in the area served by the office.

As part of the terms and conditions of their appointment, Branch Managers are required to provide sufficient clerical support to allow for the efficient performance of the work of the Office. It is a matter for each individual Branch Manager to employ his or her own staff and neither I nor my Department has any role in the recruitment of clerical staff by a Branch Manager.

While the terms and conditions under which staff are employed in Branch Offices are matters to be agreed between the Branch Manager and his or her individual employees, my Department expects that the terms of such employment would be in accordance with the relevant employment legislation.

In this regard, if an employee is of the opinion that they have been unfairly dismissed they may present a claim of unfair dismissal to either a Rights Commissioner or the Employment Appeals Tribunal under the Unfair Dismissals Acts.