Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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606. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the process involved for using the exemption under section 41(1) of the National Minimum Wage Act 2000; the number of times this exemption has been used since enactment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15362/16]

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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607. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the number of times the exemption in section 41(1) of the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 has been used since its enactment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15381/16]

Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 606 and 607 together.

I understand there have been no applications to the Labour Court under Section 41(1) of the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 since its enactment.

The National Minimum Wage Act, 2000 provides (in Section 41) that the Labour Court may exempt an employer from the obligation to pay an employee or employees entitlements otherwise payable to them under the Act. The exemption shall be for a period not exceeding one year and not less than three months. An employer can only avail of this provision on one occasion. The Act specifies that before granting an exemption the Labour Court must be satisfied that the employees of the employer have consented to the application for exemption being made and have given their consent also to abide by any decision the Labour Court may make in the matter.

The following documents must accompany the application for exemption:-

1. EMPLOYEE AGREEMENT

(1) Agreement in which the majority of the employees in respect of whom the exemption is sought, or their representative, consent to -

- the employer making the application for the exemption; and

- abide by any decision of the Labour Court on the application

OR

(2) Collective agreement covering the majority of the employees in respect of whom the exemption is sought whereby the employees consent to -

- the employer making the application for the exemption; and

- abide by any decision of the Labour Court on the application

OR

Where the employer only has one employee -

(3) Agreement with the employee or his/her representative in which consent is given to the employer to make the application and in which the employee consents to abide by the decision of the Labour Court on the application.

2. EMPLOYEE DETAILS

A list giving the names and occupations of all employees in respect of whom application for exemption is made.

Completed applications, together with the documents specified at 1. and 2. should be returned to:-

Programming Section

The Labour Court

Tom Johnson House

Haddington Road

Dublin 4

Phone: (01) 6136608, 6136611, 6136610

Lo-call (if calling from outside the (01) area): 1890 220228