Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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411. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if the award due to an employee arising from a Labour Court decision will be affected in any way by the introduction of fixed payment notice's as set out in the Workplace Relations Bill 2014. [34407/14]

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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412. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the further action that will be taken by the Labour Court in the event that an employer pays in full with the specified time frame a fixed payment notice but does not in part or in full discharge the award to a current or former employee to which the notice relates to. [34408/14]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 411 and 412 together.

I believe that for a workplace relations system to have credibility it must be supported by proportionate, effective and efficient compliance and enforcement measures. The current system of enforcement of employment rights awards is cumbersome, expensive and not fit for purpose. For this reason, provision has been made in the Workplace Relations Bill 2014 for a range of enhanced compliance measures, including the use of Compliance Notices, Fixed Payment Notices and a new mechanism for enforcing awards of the WRC Adjudicators and Labour Court Determinations.

Section 35 of the Bill makes provision for the use of Fixed Payment Notices in respect of a specified range of acts of non-compliance on the part of employers. The matters in respect of which a Fixed Payment Notice may be issued are specified in subsection 5. The use of this mechanism is intended to encourage compliance with employment law and reduce the need to rely on expensive and time consuming prosecution procedures for the scheduled acts of non-compliance.

Where an inspector detects suspected non-compliance in respect of one or more of the scheduled offences, he or she shall serve a Fixed Payment Notice. If the person on whom the notice is served pays the charge the matter does not proceed to Court. However, if the person fails or refuses to pay the charge the matter can be progressed to the District Court where the defendant can defend their position in the normal way.

The Fixed Payment Notice process, as provided for in the Bill, is being introduced as a measure to achieve a more effective system of compliance with employment law. This measure will be an entirely separate mechanism from the new structures being established in the legislation for the adjudication of employment rights disputes. The Bill provides that all first instance complaints under employment rights and equality legislation will be dealt with by WRC Adjudicators with a right of appeal to the Labour Court (except appeals under the Equal Status Acts which will continue to be dealt with by the Circuit Court). Under the legislation neither the WRC Adjudication Service nor the Labour Court will have any role in the Fixed Payment Notice process. The Bill also makes provision for the introduction of a more effective and streamlined system for the enforcement of awards from WRC Adjudicators and/or the Labour Court under employment rights legislation via the District Court.

I am satisfied that these new compliance and enforcement measures will provide for more proportionate, efficient and effective enforcement of employment law.

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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413. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if the decision to conduct Workplace Relation Commission mediation and adjudication hearings otherwise than in public is in contravention of Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union which states that everyone has a right to a fair and public hearing. [34409/14]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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The aim of the Workplace Relations Bill is to create a modern, user-friendly, world-class employment workplace relations system that will provide significant benefits for its users and society as a whole. The focus will be on resolving the workplace disputes as quickly and inexpensively as possible.

The legislation makes provision for the establishment of a range of services (including mediation) to facilitate the resolution of employment rights disputes where possible at an early stage and without recourse to adjudication. Mediation is a voluntary, confidential process that allows two or more disputing parties to resolve their conflict in a mutually agreeable way with the help of a neutral third party, a mediator. The mediation service provided by the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) will be akin to the mediation service which is currently provided by the Equality Tribunal under equality legislation. Should mediation yield a compromise or settlement between the parties or a withdrawal of the complaint, the outcome will be confidential to the parties. Likewise, if the mediation is unsuccessful, anything divulged by the parties in the process cannot be used subsequently in the adjudication or inspection process. Given the confidential nature of the mediation process, the decision to conduct WRC mediation otherwise than in public, is not in contravention with Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

Where employment rights complaints cannot be resolved at local level or with the assistance of the WRC dispute resolution services, parties will have access to a professional and trusted adjudication service. My objective is to ensure that stakeholders have confidence that cases dealt with by the Adjudication Service of the WRC will be heard in a fair and transparent manner in accordance with the law and that the principles of natural justice apply. The Workplace Relations Bill makes provision for the replacement of the existing complex system of five different bodies with a straightforward two-tier system for the adjudication of employment rights disputes. The WRC Adjudication Service will deal with all disputes of right in the first instance and the Labour Court will deal with all such cases on appeal.

Private hearings are not contrary to the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. The vast majority of employees and employers do not want the details of their relationship, or the personal details which may arise in the course of a hearing, aired in public. There does not appear to be any great demand for public hearings from employers or employees. Currently, for example, all Labour Court hearings are held in private. However, parties may request public hearings under certain Acts.

As regards the right under the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU to have one’s rights determined in public, either party will be able to appeal a WRC decision to the Labour Court. This appeal hearing will be in public. That – and the fact that the WRC and Labour Court will be subject to the supervision of the High Court by way of Judicial Review – means that the requirements of the Charter are satisfied. This view is supported by the Attorney General.

Having given due consideration to the State’s obligations under Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, and the relevant case law of the European Court of Human Rights, and bearing in mind in particular the unique nature of the employment relationship, the Bill provides expressly that employment rights and equality complaints should be heard in private at first instance. Appeals to the Labour Court will be heard in public, thus ensuring compliance with the requirements of Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights. Disputes of interest will continue to be heard in private (both at first instance and on appeal).