Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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120. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the reason a person (details supplied) in County Cork has a case before the Employment Appeals Tribunal since February 2013 and has not been given a date for a hearing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10037/14]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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The Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT) is independent in the exercise of its quasi-judicial function and I have no direct involvement in its day to day operations. The Tribunal is one of the front-line services directly affected by the current turbulence in the labour market. The Tribunal hears claims under 18 separate pieces of legislation, some of which are lodged as direct claims to the Tribunal and others which come to the Tribunal by way of appeal or implementation of a Rights Commissioner’s recommendation/decision. I am informed that the waiting period for a hearing date at the Tribunal at the end of January 2014 in the region in question is 76 weeks. This is a reduction of 5 weeks over the past year.

I understand that the Tribunal targets those areas with the longest waiting periods and highest level of claims outstanding, within the resources it has currently available. The Tribunal has been pro-active in driving efficiencies. Divisions of the Tribunal are sitting longer, hearing more cases per hearing and seeking to manage the caseload to maximise efficiency. As part of the drive for efficiencies, the Tribunal streams cases that are envisaged to be more straight-forward. In this context the number of cases awaiting a hearing date in the region under question has been reduced in the past year by 27% and this includes new cases arising.

I understand that if the person in question believes that they have significant grounds to support an application, they may apply to a sitting Division of a Tribunal to have their case heard at an early date. This is done by completing a form available from the EAT Secretariat, having given appropriate notice to the opposing parties and appearing before a Division of the Tribunal to set out the reasons as to why this case should be expedited and heard before other cases, which were received ahead of the case in question. It will be a matter for that Division to grant or refuse the application. However, I would like to draw to the Deputy's attention that the policy of the Tribunal is to only grant such applications where circumstances of extreme urgency exist.

Notwithstanding the efforts of the EAT to reduce backlogs and waiting times for hearings, I believe the delays that users of the service are experiencing are unacceptable. This is one of the reasons why I am undertaking a root and branch reform of all five Workplace Relations Bodies. My objective is to deliver a world-class workplace relations service which is simple to use, independent, effective, impartial, cost effective and provides for workable means of redress and enforcement, within a reasonable period of time.

A new two-tier Workplace Relations structure will be established comprising two statutorily independent bodies replacing the current five (i.e. the Employment Appeals Tribunal, the National Employment Rights Authority, the Equality Tribunal, the Labour Relations Commission and the Labour Court). This will comprise of a new single body of first instance to be called the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) and a separate appeals body, which will effectively be an expanded Labour Court. All complaints will be dealt with by a single body of first instance where the aim will be to have a hearing within three months from the time the case is lodged.

The preparation of the legislation which will give effect to the new workplace relations structures is at an advanced stage. My intention is to publish the Workplace Relations Bill as early as possible during the Spring/Summer Dáil session 2014 with a view to having the new structures in place during 2014.