Labour Services Act , 1987

1. Definitions.

1.—(1)In this Act—

“the Act of 1967” means the Industrial Training Act, 1967;

F1[‘Act of 1995’means theEthics in Public Office Act 1995;]

“the Agency” means the Youth Employment Agency formed and registered under the Youth Employment Agency Act, 1981;

“An Chomhairle” means An Chomhairle Oiliúna;

“An Foras” means the body established by section 3;

“the establishment day” means the day appointed by the Minister under section 2;

“the Manpower Service” means the National Manpower Service of the Minister;

F1[‘material interest’shall be construed in accordance with section 2(3) of the Act of 1995;]

“the Minister” means the Minister for Labour;

“recognised trade unions and staff associations” means trade unions and staff associations recognised by An Foras for the purposes of negotiations which are concerned with the remuneration or conditions of employment, or the working conditions, of employees;

F1[‘serious wrongdoing’includes breach of duty by a member or member of staff of An Foras, or a consultant, adviser or other person, in relation to An Foras.]

“the subsidiary” means the subsidiary (within the meaning of the Companies Act, 1963), if any, of An Foras acquired, or formed and registered, by it pursuant to section 4 (6).

(2)(a)In this Act a reference to a section or schedule is to a section of, or the Schedule to, this Act unless it is indicated that reference to some other enactment is intended.

(b)In this Act a reference to a subsection, paragraph or subparagraph is a reference to the subsection, paragraph or subparagraph of the provision in which the reference occurs unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended.

2. Establishment day.

2.—The Minister may by order appoint a day to be the establishment day for the purposes of this Act.

3. Establishment of An Foras Áiseanna Saothair.

3.—(1)On the establishment day there shall stand established a body to be known as An Foras Áiseanna Saothair, and in this Act referred to as “An Foras”, to perform the functions assigned to it by this Act.

(2)The provisions of the Schedule shall have effect with respect to An Foras.

4. Functions of An Foras.

4.—(1)The principal functions of An Foras shall be—

(a)to provide, or arrange for, encourage and foster the provision of, training and re-training for employment and to assist (whether financially or otherwise) in, and co-ordinate, the provision of such training by others,

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(h)to collect, collate, prepare, publish and distribute from time to time information (including statistics and forecasts and extrapolations of trends and developments) in relation to services or activities provided or carried on by or on behalf of An Foras and such other matters respecting its functions as the Minister may specify and to publish and distribute analyses of the information aforesaid prepared by or on behalf of An Foras,

(i)to furnish, whenever it so thinks fit or is so requested by the Minister, advice to the Minister in relation to any matter connected with the functions or activities of, or the services provided by, An Foras, and

(j)to carry out, or arrange for the carrying out, of research into any matter related to the functions or activities of, or the services provided by, An Foras.

F3[(2) Subject to theF4[Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) Act 2012], An Foras shall also have and enjoy all those functions that were vested in An Chomhairle, the Agency and the Manpower Service immediately before the establishment day and are not specified in subsection (1).]

(3)An Foras shall have all such powers as are necessary or expedient for the performance of its functions.

(4) An Foras may, in respect of persons who are ordinarily resident in the State and who avail of or participate in the services or activities provided or carried on by An Foras in the State—

(a)provide, or arrange for the provision of, outside the State any of the services that it is authorised by this section or under section 5 to provide, or arrange for the provision of, in the State, and

(b)carry on, or arrange for the carrying on of, outside the State any of the activities that it is authorised by this section or under section 5 to carry on in the State.

(5)An Foras may, with the consent of the Minister, provide in the State any of its services, or carry on in the State any of its activities, for the benefit of persons who are not ordinarily resident in the State.

(6)(a)An Foras may, with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance, outside the State—

(i)perform any of the functions, provide any of the services or carry on any of the activities that it is authorised by this Act to perform, provide or carry on in the State, and

(ii)provide advisory and consultancy services in relation to—

(I)the performance of functions outside the State by other persons,

(II)the provision of services outside the State by other persons, or

(III)the carrying on of activities outside the State by other persons,

being functions, services and activities similar to those that An Foras is authorised by this Act to perform, provide and carry on in the State.

(b)Functions, services and activities specified in paragraph (a) shall be performed, provided and carried on through one subsidiary (within the meaning of the Companies Act, 1963) that is wholly owned by An Foras and, accordingly, An Foras may, with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance, for the purpose of such performance, provision and carrying on, acquire or form and register one, but not more than one, subsidiary (within the meaning aforesaid).

(c)The memorandum and articles of association of the subsidiary shall be in such form as may be determined by An Foras with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance.

(d)The Minister may give a direction in writing to An Foras on any matter relating to the subsidiary or the policies, programmes or activities of the subsidiary and An Foras shall comply or, as may be appropriate, secure compliance with the direction.

(e)A direction under this subsection in relation to the disposal of any assets or profits of the subsidiary shall not be given without the consent of the Minister for Finance.

(7)(a)An Foras or the subsidiary, as the case may be, shall make such charges as it considers appropriate in consideration of the performance of a function, the provision of a service or the carrying on of an activity pursuant to subsection (5) or (6) but the charges shall not be less than the cost of the performance of the function, the provision of the service or the carrying on of the activity, as the case may be.

(b)The amount of a charge under this section may be recovered by An Foras or the subsidiary, as the case may be, from the person on whom it was made as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.

(8)In this section “assist” includes advise and consult and “assistance” shall be construed accordingly.

5. Conferral of additional functions on An Foras.

5.—(1)The Minister may, if he so thinks fit, by order—

(a)confer on An Foras such additional functions connected with the functions for the time being of An Foras or the services or activities that An Foras is authorised for the time being to provide or carry on as he considers appropriate, and

(b)make such provision as he considers necessary or expedient in relation to matters ancillary to or arising out of the conferral on An Foras of functions under this section or the performance by An Foras of functions so conferred.

(2)The Minister may by order amend or revoke an order under this section (including an order under this subsection).

(3)Where an order is proposed to be made under this section, a draft thereof shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas and the order shall not be made until a motion approving of the draft has been passed by each such House.

6. Director General.

6.—(1)There shall be a chief executive officer of An Foras (who shall be known, and is referred to in this Act, as the Director General).

(2)The Director General shall carry on and manage and control generally the administration and business of An Foras and shall perform such other functions as may be determined by An Foras.

(3)The Director General shall hold office on and subject to such terms and conditions (including terms and conditions relating to remuneration and superannuation) as may be determined by the Minister with the consent of the Minister for Finance.

(4)The Director General shall be paid such allowances for expenses incurred by him as the Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, determine.

(5)The first Director General shall be appointed, and may be removed from office at any time, by the Minister; each subsequent Director General shall be appointed, and may be removed from office at any time, by An Foras with the consent of the Minister.

F5[(6) The Director General shall hold office for such period, not exceeding 5 years from the date of his appointment, as the Minister shall determine.

(7) Subject to subsection (8), where the Director General’s term of office expires by the effluxion of time he shall be eligible to be reappointed to that office.

(8) Where the Director General has served 2 terms of office (including a term of office commenced or completed before the commencement ofsection 3of the Labour Services (Amendment) Act 2009) he shall not be eligible to be reappointed to that office.

(9) The Director General shall,ex officio, be a member of An Foras.]

6A. F6[Accountability of Director General of An Foras Áiseanna Saothair to Committee of Public Accounts.

6A.—(1) The Director General shall, whenever required in writing to do so by the Committee of DáilÉireann established under the Standing Orders of DáilÉireann to examine and report to DáilÉireann on the appropriation accounts and reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General (hereafter in this section referred to as the‘Committee’), give evidence to that Committee on—

(a) the regularity and propriety of the transactions recorded or required to be recorded in any book or other record of account subject to audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General that An Foras is required by this Act to prepare,

(b) the economy and efficiency of An Foras in the use of its resources,

(c) the systems, procedures and practices employed by An Foras for the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of its operations, and

(d) any matter affecting An Foras referred to in a special report of the Comptroller and Auditor General undersection 11(2) of theComptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act 1993, or in any other report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (in so far as it relates to a matter specified in paragraph (a), (b) or (c)) that is laid before DáilÉireann.

(2) In the performance of his duties under this section, the Director General shall not question or express an opinion on the merits of any policy of the Government or a Minister of the Government or on the merits of the objectives of such a policy.]

6B. F7[Accountability of Director General of An Foras Áiseanna Saothair to other committees of Houses of Oireachtas.

6B.—(1) In this section‘Committee’means a Committee appointed by either House of the Oireachtas or jointly by both Houses of the Oireachtas (other than the Committee referred to in section 6A (inserted bysection 4of the Labour Services (Amendment) Act 2009) or the Committee on Members’Interests of DáilÉireann or the Committee on Members’Interests of SeanadÉireann) or a subcommittee of such a Committee.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), the Director General shall, at the request in writing of a Committee, attend before it to give an account in respect of matters relating to the general administration of An Foras that fall within the terms of reference of the Committee.

(3) The Director General shall not be required to give an account before a Committee in respect of any matter that has been, or is or is likely to be, the subject of proceedings before a court or tribunal in the State.

(4) Where the Director General is of the opinion that a matter in respect of which he is requested to give an account before a Committee is a matter to which subsection (3) applies, he shall, as soon as may be after the making of the request, inform the Committee in writing of that opinion and the reasons for the opinion, unless the information is conveyed to the Committee at a time when the Director General is before it.

(5) Where the Director General has informed a Committee of his opinion in accordance with subsection (4) and the Committee wish to proceed with the request concerned, the Chairperson of the Committee may, on behalf of the Committee, apply to the High Court in a summary manner for a determination of the question whether the matter is one to which subsection (3) applies, and the High Court shall determine the matter.

(6) Where the Director General informs a Committee, in accordance with subsection (4), that he is of the opinion that a matter in respect of which he is requested to give an account before the Committee is a matter to which subsection (3) applies, then, subject to subsection (7), he shall not attend before the Committee to give an account in respect of the matter.

(7) If, upon an application under subsection (5), the High Court determines that the matter concerned is one to which subsection (3) applies, the Committee shall withdraw the request referred to in subsection (2), but if the High Court determines that subsection (3) does not apply, the Director General shall attend before the Committee to give an account in respect of the matter.]

7. Staff of An Foras and subsidiary.

7.—(1)(a)An Foras may appoint such, and such number of, persons to be members of the staff of An Foras as it may determine with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance.

(b)The board of the subsidiary may appoint such, and such number of, persons to be members of the staff of the subsidiary as it may determine with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance.

(2)(a)A member of the staff of An Foras (other than the Director General) or of the staff of the subsidiary shall be paid, out of the moneys at the disposal of An Foras or the subsidiary, as the case may be, such remuneration and allowances for expenses incurred by him as An Foras, or the subsidiary, as the case may be, with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance, may determine.

(b)A member of the staff of An Foras referred to in paragraph (a) or the staff of the subsidiary shall hold his office or employment on such other terms and conditions as An Foras or, as the case may be, the board of the subsidiary, with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance, may determine.

(3)The grades of the staffs of An Foras and the subsidiary, andthe numbers of each staff in each grade, shall be determined by An Foras with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance or, as the case may be, the board of the subsidiary with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance.

(4)(a)Every person who immediately before the establishment day is a member of the staff of An Chomhairle or the Agency shall, on that day, be transferred to, and become a member of the staff of, An Foras.

(b)Every officer of the Minister who has been designated by the Minister at any time before such day as may be appointed by the Minister by order shall, on the day of such designation, be transferred to, and become a member of, the staff of An Foras.

(c)The Minister shall not make an order under paragraph (b) without having notified in writing any recognised trade unions or staff associations concerned and An Foras of his intention to do so and considering any representations made by them or any of them in relation to the matter within such time as may be specified in the notification.

(5)(a)The terms and conditions relating to tenure of office which are granted by An Foras in relation to a member of the staff of An Foras who was transferred by subsection (4) to its staff from An Chomhairle or the Agency shall not, while he is in the service of An Foras, be less favourable to him than those prevailing immediately before the establishment day in An Chomhairle or the Agency, as may be appropriate, save in accordance with a collective agreement negotiated with any recognised trade unions or staff associations concerned.

(b)The terms and conditions relating to tenure of office which are granted by An Foras in relation to a member of the staff of An Foras who was designated by the Minister and under subsection (4) transferred by that subsection to its staff shall not, while he is in the service of An Foras, be less favourable to him than those prevailing for the time being in the civil service; any alteration in the conditions in regard to tenure of office of any such member shall not be such as to render those conditions less favourable to him than those prevailing in the civil service at the time of such alteration save in accordance with a collective agreement negotiated with any recognised trade unions or staff associations concerned. If a dispute arises between An Foras and any such member as to conditions prevailing in the civil service, the matter shall be determined by the Minister for Finance after consultation with the Minister.

(6)Save in accordance with a collective agreement negotiated with any recognised trade union or staff association concerned, a member of the staff of An Chomhairle or the Agency or an officer of the Minister designated by the Minister under subsection (4), who is transferred by that subsection to the staff of An Foras shall not, while in the service of An Foras, receive a lesser scale of pay or be made subject to less beneficial terms and conditions of service (other than those relating to tenure of office) than the scale of pay to which he was entitled and the terms and conditions of service (other than those relating to tenure of office) to which he was subject immediately before the day on which he was so transferred.