WORKPLACE RELATIONS ACT 2015

• “(4A)

  • (a) A person who, immediately before the commencement of section 75 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015, stood appointed as a workers’ member of the Court shall, from such commencement, continue to be a workers’ member of the Court for the unexpired period of the term of his appointment subject to the same terms and conditions as applied to his appointment immediately before such commencement.

  • (b) A person who, immediately before the commencement of section 75 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015, stood appointed as an employers’ member of the Court shall, from such commencement, continue to be an employers’ member of the Court for the unexpired period of the term of his appointment subject to the same terms and conditions as applied to his appointment immediately before such commencement.

• (4B)

  • (a) The Minister may, after consultation with the designated body concerned, reappoint a person whose term of office as a workers’ member of the Court expires by the efflux of time to be a workers’ member of the Court.

  • (b) The Minister may, after consultation with the designated body concerned, reappoint a person whose term of office as an employers’ member of the Court expires by the efflux of time to be an employers’ member of the Court.

• (4C) Where a person—

  • (a) appointed under subsection (4) to be a member of the Court,

  • (b) who continues to be a member of the Court by virtue of subsection (4A), or

  • (c) reappointed in accordance with subsection (4B) to be a member of the Court,

  is, for whatever reason, unable to perform his functions as such member and the Minister is of the opinion that his inability to so perform his functions would unduly disrupt the performance by the Court or a division of the Court of its functions, a temporary vacancy in the membership of the Court shall be deemed to exist and the Minister may, after consultation with the designated body that nominated the person under that subsection, appoint a person to fill that temporary vacancy subject to such terms and conditions as the Minister shall determine.”.

76. Amendment of Act of 1967

76. (1) The Act of 1967 is amended—

• (a) in subsection (1) of section 2, by the insertion of the following definitions:

“ ‘Act of 2015’ means the Workplace Relations Act 2015;

‘adjudication officer’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2015;

‘Director General’ means the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission;”,

• (b) in section 24, by—

• (i) the substitution, in paragraph (c) of subsection (1), of Director General” for “Tribunal”,

• (ii) the substitution, in subsection (2A) (inserted by section 12 of the Redundancy Payments Act 1971), of “adjudication officer, if he is satisfied” for “Tribunal, if it is satisfied”, and

• (iii) the substitution, in subsection (3) (inserted by section 13 of the Redundancy Payments Act 1979) of—

(I)“Director General” for “Tribunal” in each place that it occurs, and

(II)“at his discretion” for “at its discretion”,

• (c) in section 39, by—

• (i) the substitution, in subsection (15), of “Director General” for “Tribunal” in each place that it occurs,

• (ii) the substitution, in subsection (16), of “Director General” for “Tribunal”,

• (iii) the insertion of the following subsection:

• “(16A) The Director General shall refer to an adjudication officer for adjudication by that officer an appeal under subsection (15) or a question referred to the Director General under subsection (16).”,

• (iv) the insertion of the following subsection:

• “(16B) Subsections (15) and (16) of section 41 of the Act of 2015 shall apply in relation to an appeal under subsection (15) or a question referred to the Director General under subsection (16) as they apply to a complaint or dispute to which the said section 41 applies, subject to the following modifications:

  • (a) references to complaint or dispute shall be construed as references to such an appeal or such a question;

  • (b) references in the said subsection (15) to complainant or respondent shall be construed as references to employee or employer;

  • (c) the reference in the said subsection (16) to parties to a complaint or dispute under that section shall be construed as a reference to the employee or employer concerned; and

  • (d) any other necessary modifications.”,

• (v) the substitution, in subsection (17), of “adjudication officer concerned” for “Tribunal” in each place that it occurs,

• (vi) the substitution, in paragraph (a) of subsection (19), of “Director General” for “Tribunal”, and

• (vii) the substitution, in paragraphs (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (g) and (i) of subsection (19), of “an adjudication officer” for “the Tribunal” in each place that it occurs,

• (d) F43[…]

and

• (e) by the substitution of the following section for section 40 (inserted by section 9 of the Redundancy Payments Act 1971):

“Appeal to High Court on point of law

40. A party to proceedings before the Labour Court under this Part may, not later than 42 days from the service on that party of notice of the decision of the Labour Court in those proceedings, appeal that decision to the High Court on a point of law, and the decision of the High Court in relation thereto shall be final and conclusive.”.

• (2) The amendments to the Act of 1967 effected by this section shall not apply in relation to—

• (a) an appeal to the Employment Appeals Tribunal under subsection (15) of section 39 of that Act brought before the commencement of this section, or

• (b) a question referred to in subsection (16) of that section falling to be decided by a deciding officer before the commencement of this section.

77. Amendment of section 2 of Act of 1969

77. Section 2 (inserted by section 9 of the Industrial Relations Act 1976) of the Act of 1969 is amended by the deletion, in subsection (2), of the words “less one”.

78. Certain functions of Labour Court performable by chairman or deputy chairman of Labour Court

78. The Act of 1969 is amended by the insertion of the following section:

“3A. Such functions of the Court as may be prescribed by order made by the Minister, after consultation with the chairman, may be performed by the chairman or a deputy chairman sitting alone.”.

79. Amendment of section 4 of Act of 1969

79. Section 4 of the Act of 1969 is amended by—

• (a) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1) —

• “(1)

  • (a) Subject to subsection (1A) (inserted by section 79(b) of the Workplace Relations Act 2015), the Minister shall appoint persons to be deputy chairmen from among persons in respect of whom recommendations for the purposes of this section have been made by the Public Appointments Service consequent upon the holding of a competition or competitions in accordance with the Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004.

  • (b) A deputy chairman shall hold office subject to such terms and conditions as the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform determines.”,

• (b) the insertion of the following subsections:

• “(1A) A person who immediately before the commencement of section 79 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 stood appointed as deputy chairman shall, from such commencement, continue to be deputy chairman for the unexpired period of the term of his appointment subject to the same terms and conditions as applied to his appointment immediately before such commencement.

• (1B) The Minister may reappoint a person whose term of office as deputy chairman expires by the efflux of time to be a deputy chairman, and paragraph (a) of subsection (1) shall not apply in respect of the reappointment of such person.

• (1C) Where a person—

  • (a) appointed under subsection (1) to be a deputy chairman,

  • (b) who continues to be a deputy chairman by virtue of subsection (1A), or

  • (c) reappointed in accordance with subsection (1B) to be a deputy chairman,

  is, for whatever reason, unable to perform his functions as deputy chairman and the Minister is of the opinion that his inability to so perform his functions would unduly disrupt the performance by the Court or a division of the Court of its functions, a temporary vacancy among the deputy chairmen shall be deemed to exist and the Minister may, after consultation with the chairman, appoint a person to fill that temporary vacancy subject to such terms and conditions as the Minister shall determine.

• (1D) If a deputy chairman dies, resigns, ceases to be qualified for office and ceases to hold office or is removed from office, or a deputy chairman’s term of office expires and he is not reappointed under subsection (1B), the Minister may appoint a person to be a deputy chairman to fill the vacancy so occasioned pending the appointment of a deputy chairman to fill that vacancy in accordance with subsection (1), and the person so appointed shall hold office subject to such terms and conditions as the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, determines.”,

• (c) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (2):

• “(2)

  • (a) The Minister may designate a deputy chairman to perform the functions of the chairman in the absence of the chairman or where the office of chairman is vacant, and a deputy chairman so designated shall in such absence or upon such position becoming vacant perform those functions.

  • (b) References in any enactment shall, for the purposes of the performance of the functions of chairman by a deputy chairman designated under paragraph (a), include references to that deputy chairman.

  • (c) A person who, immediately before the commencement of section 79 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015, stood appointed under subsection (1) shall be deemed to have been designated under paragraph (a).”,

• (d) the deletion of subsections (3) and (4), and

• (e) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (7):

• “(7) The Civil Service Regulation Acts 1956 to 2005 shall not apply to the office of deputy chairman of the Court.”.

80. Amendment of Act of 1977

80. (1) The Act of 1977 is amended—

• (a) in section 1, by the insertion of the following definitions:

“ ‘Act of 2015’ means the Workplace Relations Act 2015;

‘adjudication officer’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2015;

‘Director General’ means the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission;”,

• (b) by the substitution, in paragraph (d) of subsection (2A) of section 2, of “the adjudication officer or the Labour Court” for “the rights commissioner, the Tribunal or the Circuit Court”,

• (c) by the substitution, in subsection (5) of section 2A of “the adjudication officer or the Labour Court” for “the rights commissioner, the Tribunal or the Circuit Court”,

• (d) by the substitution, in subsection (2A) of section 5, of “the adjudication officer or the Labour Court” for “the rights commissioner, the Tribunal or the Circuit Court”,

• (e) by the substitution, in subsection (7) of section 6, of “the adjudication officer or the Labour Court” for “the rights commissioner, the Tribunal or the Circuit Court”,

• (f) in subsection (1) of section 7, by the substitution of “the adjudication officer or the Labour Court” for “the rights commissioner, the Tribunal or the Circuit Court”,

• (g) in section 8, by—

• (i) F44[…]

• (ii) F44[…]

• (iii) F44[…]

• (iv) F44[…]

• (v) the substitution, in subsection (2), of—

• (I) “the Director General” for “a rights commissioner or the Tribunal, as the case may be”, and

• (II) “the Director General” for “the rights commissioner or the Tribunal,” in each place that it occurs,

• (vi) the deletion, in subsection (2), of “, as the case may be,” in each place that it occurs,

• (vii) the substitution, in subsection (6), of “an adjudication officer” for “a rights commissioner”,

• (viii) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (7):

• “(7) An adjudication officer shall notify the Labour Court of any decision he makes under this section.”,

• (ix) F44[…]

• (x) F44[…]

• (xi) F44[…]

• (xii) by the substitution, in subsection (12), of “the adjudication officer or the Labour Court, as may be appropriate” for “the rights commissioner, the Tribunal or the Circuit Court, as the case may be”,

• (h) by the insertion of the following sections:

“Application of provisions of Act of 2015 to claim for redress

8A. (1) Sections 42 and 43 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 shall apply to a claim referred to an adjudication officer under section 8 as they apply to a complaint or dispute referred to an adjudication officer under section 41 of that Act, subject to the following modifications:

• (a) references to a complaint or dispute shall be construed as references to a claim referred to an adjudication officer under section 8 of this Act;

• (b) the reference to section 41 shall be construed as a reference to section 8 of this Act; and

• (c) any other necessary modifications.

• (2) Section 44 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 shall apply to a decision of an adjudication officer given in respect of a claim for redress under this Act by an employee as it applies to a decision of an adjudication officer given in proceedings under section 41 of that Act, subject to the following modifications:

  • (a) the reference in subsection (1) of the said section 44 to—

    • (i) proceedings under section 41 shall be construed as a reference to a claim under section 8 of this Act, and

    • (ii) those proceedings shall be construed as a reference in relation to that claim;

    and

  • (b) any other necessary modifications.

  Disposal of claims by written submission only

  8B. (1) The Director General may, where he or she considers that a claim for redress under this Act may be dealt with by written submissions only, inform the parties to the claim, by notification in writing, of his or her intention to deal with the claim in that manner.

• (2) Where a party to a claim for redress under this Act is given a notification under subsection (1) and, not later than 42 days after having been given the notification, that party informs the Director General that he or she objects to the claim being dealt with in the manner specified in the notification, the Director General shall not deal with the claim in that manner.

Striking out of claims that are not pursued

8C. (1) Where a claim for redress under this Act is referred to the Director General under section 8, the Director General may strike out the claim if he or she is satisfied that the claim has not been pursued by the employee during the period of one year (or such other period as may be prescribed by regulations made by the Minister) immediately preceding its being struck out.

• (2) The Director General shall, as soon as may be after he or she strikes out a claim for redress under this Act in accordance with this section, notify the parties to the claim in writing of the striking out of the claim.

• (3) Where a claim for redress under this Act is struck out under this section, the employee who brought the claim shall not be entitled to prosecute the claim any further.”,

• (i) by the deletion of section 9,

• (j) the insertion of the following section:

“Appeal to High Court on point of law

10A. A party to proceedings before the Labour Court under this Act may, not later than 42 days from the service on that party of notice of the decision of the Labour Court in those proceedings, appeal that decision to the High Court on a point of law, and the decision of the High Court in relation thereto shall be final and conclusive.”.

• (k) the substitution of the following section for section 11:

“11. (1) A notice or other document that is required to be served on or given to a person under this Act shall be addressed to the person concerned by name, and may be so served on or given to the person in one of the following ways:

• (a) by delivering it to the person;

• (b) by leaving it at the address at which the person ordinarily resides or, in a case in which an address for service has been furnished, at that address;

• (c) by sending it by post in a prepaid registered letter to the address at which the person ordinarily resides or, in a case in which an address for service has been furnished, to that address; or

• (d) by electronic means, in a case in which the person has given notice in writing to the person serving or giving the notice or document concerned of his or her consent to the notice or document (or notices or documents of a class to which the notice or document belongs) being served on, or given to, him or her in that manner.

• (2) For the purpose of this section, a company within the meaning of the Companies Acts shall be deemed to be ordinarily resident at its registered office, and every other body corporate and every unincorporated body of persons shall be deemed to be ordinarily resident at its principal office or place of business.”,

and

• (l) the substitution, in subsection (2) of section 15, of—

• (i) “decision has been made by an adjudication officer” for “recommendation has been made by a rights commissioner”, and

• (ii) the deletion of “or the hearing of a claim by the Tribunal has commenced”.

• F45[(1A) The functions standing vested in a rights commissioner immediately before the commencement of this section shall, in relation to a claim for redress referred to in subsection (2), continue to be performable after such commencement by a person who immediately before such commencement was a rights commissioner.]

• (2) The amendments to the Act of 1977 effected by this section shall not apply in relation to a claim for redress under that Act brought before the commencement of this section.

81. Amendment of Protection of Employees (Employers’ Insolvency) Act 1984

81. (1) Section 1 of the Act of 1984 is amended, in subsection (1), by the insertion of the following definition:

“ ‘Act of 2015’ means the Workplace Relations Act 2015;”.

• (2) Section 6 of the Act of 1984 is amended—

• (a) in subparagraph (xxx) of paragraph (a) of subsection (2), by the deletion of “and” after “that Schedule,”,

• (b) in subparagraph (xxxi) of that paragraph, by the substitution of “that Schedule, and” for “that Schedule.”,

• (c) in that paragraph, by the insertion of the following subparagraph (inserted by paragraph 6 of Schedule 2 of the Protected Disclosures Act 2014):

• “(xxxii) any amount that an employer within the meaning of the Act of 2015 is required to pay by virtue of a decision of an adjudication officer or the Labour Court under Part 4 of that Act.”,

• (d) in paragraph (b) of subsection (2), by the substitution of “, (xxxi) or (xxxii)” for “or (xxxi) ”,

• (e) in paragraph (c) of subsection (2), by—

• (i) the substitution of “, (xxxi) or (xxxii)” for “or (xxxi) ”, and

• (ii) the substitution of the following subparagraph for subparagraph (i):

• “(i) the decision or recommendation, as appropriate, of the rights commissioner, or the decision of the adjudication officer under Part 4 of the Act of 2015,”,

and

• (f) in the definition of “relevant date” in subsection (9), by the substitution of “, (xxxi) or (xxxii)” for “or (xxxi) ”.

• (3) Section 9 of the Act of 1984 is amended by—

• (a) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1):

• “(1) A person who has applied for a payment—

  • (a) under section 6 of a debt described in subparagraph (i), (ii) or (iv) of subsection (2)(a) of that section, or

  • (b) to be made under section 7 of this Act into the resources of a pension scheme,

  may present a complaint to the Director General that—

  - (i) the Minister has failed to make such payment, or
  
  - (ii) any such payment made by the Minister is less than the amount that the Minister is required to pay under section 6 or 7, as may be appropriate.”,
  

• (b) the insertion of the following subsections:

• “(1A) The Director General shall refer a complaint presented to him or her under subsection (1) for adjudication by an adjudication officer.

• (1B) An adjudication officer shall not entertain a complaint referred to him or her under this section if it has been presented to the Director General after the expiration of the period of 6 months beginning on the date of the decision by the Minister in relation to the application to which the complaint relates.

• (1C) An adjudication officer may entertain a complaint to which this section applies presented to the Director General after the expiration of the period referred to in subsection (1B) (but not later than 6 months after such expiration) if he or she is satisfied that the failure to present the complaint within that period was due to reasonable cause.”,

• (c) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (3):

• “(3) Where a claim for payment is made under section 6 or 7 and it appears to the Minister that a doubt exists as to whether or not such claim is allowable (in whole or in part), he may refer any matter arising in connection with the claim to the Director General, and the Director General shall refer the matter for adjudication by an adjudication officer.”,

• (d) the substitution, in subsection (4), of “adjudication officer” for “Tribunal” and “he” for “it”,

• (e) the insertion of the following subsection:

• “(6) In this section—

‘adjudication officer’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2015; and

‘Director General’ means the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission.”,

and

• (f) the deletion of subsections (2) and (5).

• F46[(4) The amendment of the Act of 1984 effected by this section shall not apply in relation to a complaint presented to the Employment Appeals Tribunal under section 9 of that Act before the commencement of this section.]

• (5) F47[…]

82. Amendment of Part VII of Pensions Act 1990

82. Part VII of the Pensions Act 1990 is amended by—

• (a) the deletion, in section 65, of the definition of “the Director” (inserted by section 24 of the Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2003),

• (b) the substitution of “Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission” for “Director” in each place that it occurs, and

• (c) the substitution of “decision” for “recommendation” in each place that it occurs.

83. Amendment of Act of 1998

83. (1) The Act of 1998 is amended—

• (a) in section 39, by—

• (i) the deletion of paragraph (bb) (inserted by section 25 of the Parental Leave Act 1998), and

• (ii) the deletion of paragraph (c),

• (b) by the insertion, in subsection (1) of section 74, of the following definitions:

‘Act of 2015’ means the Workplace Relations Act 2015;

‘adjudication officer’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2015;

‘mediation officer’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2015;”,

• (c) by the substitution of—

• (i) “adjudication officer” for “equality officer” in each place that it occurs,

• (ii) “Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission” for “Director of the Equality Tribunal” and “Director” in each place that they occur, and

• (iii) “mediation officer” for “equality mediation officer” in each place that it occurs,

• (d) in section 75, by—

• (i) the deletion of subsections (1), (2), (2A), (3), (4), (4A) and (8), and

• (ii) the deletion, in subsection (4B), of “or any other enactment”,

• (e) the substitution of the following section for section 78:

“78. Section 39 of the Act of 2015 shall apply to a case referred to the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission under section 77 of this Act as it applies to a complaint presented, or dispute referred, to the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission under section 41 of the Act of 2015, subject to the modification that references to a complaint or dispute under the said section 39 shall be construed as references to a case so referred.”,

• (f) in section 79, by the deletion of subsections (5A) and (7),

• (g) F48[…]

• (h) by the substitution, after the word “published” in subsection (1) of section 89, of “on the internet in such form and in such manner as the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission considers appropriate”,

• (i) by the substitution of the following section for section 91:

“91. (1) Section 43 of the Act of 2015 shall apply to a decision of the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission under section 79 as it applies to a decision of an adjudication officer under section 41 of that Act, subject to—

• (a) the modification that the following paragraph is substituted for paragraph (a) of subsection (1):

‘(a) on application to it in that behalf by the complainant concerned, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, or’,

and

• (b) the following modifications:

  • (i) references to a complaint or dispute referred to an adjudication officer under section 41 shall be construed as references to a case referred to the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission under section 77 of this Act;

  • (ii) references to a complaint or dispute shall be construed as references to a case referred to the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission under section 77 of this Act;

  • (iii) references to decision of an adjudication officer shall be construed as references to decision of the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission under section 79 of this Act;

  • (iv) the reference to decision of an adjudication officer under that section shall be construed as a reference to decision of the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission under section 79 of this Act; and

  • (v) references to employee shall be construed as references to complainant within the meaning of Part VII of this Act and references to employer shall be construed as references to respondent within such meaning.

• (2) Section 45 of the Act of 2015 shall apply to a decision of the Labour Court under section 44 of that Act upon an appeal from a decision of the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission under section 79 subject to the modification that the following paragraph is substituted for paragraph (b) of subsection (1):

‘(b) on application to it in that behalf, with the consent of the complainant, by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission,’.”,

• (j) by the deletion of section 92,

• (k) by the insertion, after “Chairman of the Labour Court” in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 94, of “, an inspector appointed under section 26 of the Act of 2015”,

• (l) by the substitution, in subsection (3) of section 100, of “Workplace Relations Commission” for “Minister”,

• (m) F48[…]

• (n) in section 103, by—

• (i) the substitution, in subsection (1), of “under this Part or section 44 of the Act of 2015 in accordance with section 83” for “under this Part”,

• (ii) the substitution, in subsection (2), of “under this Part or under section 44 of the Act of 2015 in accordance with section 83” for “under this Part”,

• (iii) the deletion of paragraphs (a) and (d) of subsection (3), and

• (iv) the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (c) of subsection (3):

• “(c) a decision under section 44 of the Act of 2015 to which section 83 applies.”.

• (2) The amendment of the Act of 1998 effected by this section shall not apply in relation to a case referred to the Director of the Equality Tribunal under section 77 of that Act before the commencement of this section.

• F49[(3) The functions standing vested in an equality officer immediately before the commencement of this section shall, in relation to a case referred to in subsection (2), continue to be performable after such commencement by a person who immediately before such commencement was an equality officer.

• (4) The functions standing vested in an equality mediation officer immediately before the commencement of this section shall, in relation to a case referred to in subsection (2), continue to be performable after such commencement by a person who immediately before such commencement was an equality mediation officer.]

84. Amendment of Equal Status Act 2000

84. (1) The Act of 2000 is amended—

• (a) in subsection (1) of section 2, by—

• (i) the insertion of the following definitions:

" ‘Act of 2015’ means the Workplace Relations Act 2015;

‘adjudication officer’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2015;

‘mediation officer’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2015;

‘Labour Court’ means the body established by the Industrial Relations Act 1946;”,

and

• (ii) the deletion of the definition of “Director”,

• (b) by the substitution (other than in subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (j) of subsection (2) of section 3) of “Director of the Workplace Relations Commission” for “Director” in each place that it occurs,

• (c) by the substitution, in subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (j) of subsection (2) of section 3, of “adjudication officer” for “Director”,

• (d) in section 20, by—

• (i) the deletion of the definitions of “equality mediation officer” and “equality officer”, and

• (ii) the insertion of the following definition:

“ ‘Minister’ means the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation;”,

• (e) in Part III, by—

• (i) the substitution of “adjudication officer” for “equality officer” in each place that it occurs, and

• (ii) the substitution of “mediation officer” for “equality mediation officer” in each place that it occurs,

• (f) in section 30, by the insertion after the word “published” of “on the internet in such form and manner as the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission considers appropriate”,

• (g) F50[…]

• (h) by the deletion of section 32,

• (i) in section 41, by the substitution of “Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation” for “Minister” in each place that it occurs, and

• (j) in section 44, by—

• (i) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1):

• “(1) Summary proceedings for an offence under this Act may be brought and prosecuted by the Workplace Relations Commission or the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission.”,

• (ii) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (2):

• “(2) Where an offence under this Act is committed by a body corporate and is proved to have been so committed with the consent or connivance of any person, being a director, manager, secretary or other officer of the body corporate, or a person who was purporting to act in any such capacity, that person shall, as well as the body corporate, be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished as if he or she were guilty of the first-mentioned offence.”,

and

• (iii) the deletion of subsection (3).

• (2) The amendment of the Act of 2000 effected by this section shall not apply in relation to a case referred to the Director of the Equality Tribunal under section 21 of that Act before the commencement of this section.

• F51[(3) The functions standing vested in an equality officer immediately before the commencement of this section shall, in relation to a case referred to in subsection (2), continue to be performable after such commencement by a person who immediately before such commencement was an equality officer.

• (4) The functions standing vested in an equality mediation officer immediately before the commencement of this section shall, in relation to a case referred to in subsection (2), continue to be performable after such commencement by a person who immediately before such commencement was an equality mediation officer.]

85. Amendment of section 5 of Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Act 2007

85. Section 5 of the Protection of Employment (Exceptional Collective Redundancies and Related Matters) Act 2007 is amended by—

• (a) the substitution, in paragraph (a) of subsection (2), of “Minister” for “National Implementation Body (being the body of that name established, under the aegis of the Department of the Taoiseach, to oversee the attainment and maintenance of industrial peace and stability)”,

• (b) the substitution, in subsection (3), of “person” for “body”, and

• (c) the substitution, in subsection (10), of “person” for “body”.

86. Other amendments

86. (1) The Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 is amended—

• (a) in section 19, by the insertion of the following subsection:

• “(1A) For the purposes of this section, a day that an employee was absent from work due to illness shall, if the employee provided to his or her employer a certificate of a registered medical practitioner in respect of that illness, be deemed to be a day on which the employee was—

  • (a) at his or her place of work or at his or her employer’s disposal, and

  • (b) carrying on or performing the activities or duties of his or her work.”,

• (b) in section 20, by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (c) of subsection (1):

• “(c) to the leave being granted—

• (i) within the leave year to which it relates,

• (ii) with the consent of the employee, within the period of 6 months after the end of that leave year, or

• (iii) where the employee—

  • (I) is, due to illness, unable to take all or any part of his or her annual leave during that leave year or the period specified in subparagraph (ii), and

  • (II) has provided a certificate of a registered medical practitioner in respect of that illness to his or her employer,

  within the period of 15 months after the end of that leave year.”,

and

• (c) in section 23, by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1):

• “(1)

  • (a) Where—

    • (i) an employee ceases to be employed, and

    • (ii) the whole or any portion of the annual leave in respect of the relevant period remains to be granted to the employee,

    the employee shall, as compensation for the loss of that annual leave, be paid by his or her employer an amount equal to the pay, calculated at the normal weekly rate or, as the case may be, at a rate proportionate to the normal weekly rate, that he or she would have received had he or she been granted that annual leave.

  • (b) In this subsection—

  ‘relevant period’ means—

  - (i) in relation to a cessation of employment of an employee to whom subparagraph (i) of paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section 20 applies, the current leave year,
  
  - (ii) in relation to a cessation of employment of an employee to whom subparagraph (ii) of the said paragraph (c) applies, that occurs during the first 6 months of the current leave year—
  
      - (I) the current leave year, and
  
      - (II) the leave year immediately preceding the current leave year,
  
  - (iii) in relation to a cessation of employment of an employee to whom subparagraph (iii) of the said paragraph (c) applies, that occurs during the first 12 months of the period of 15 months referred to in the said subparagraph (iii) —
  
      - (I) the current leave year, and
  
      - (II) the leave year immediately preceding the current leave year,
  
        or
  
  - (iv) in relation to a cessation of employment of an employee to whom subparagraph (iii) of the said paragraph (c) applies that occurs during the final 3 months of the period of 15 months referred to in the said subparagraph (iii) —
  
      - (I) the current leave year, and
  
      - (II) the 2 leave years immediately preceding the current leave year.”.
  

• (2) Section 23 of the Act of 1990 is amended, in paragraph (a) of subsection (3), by the deletion of “(other than established civil servants within the meaning of the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956)”.

• (3) Section 2B (inserted by section 2 of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2013) of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Act 2009 is repealed.

SCHEDULE 1 Employment Enactments

Section 2

Part 1 Acts of the Oireachtas

F52[21. Paternity Leave and Benefit Act 2016]

F53[22. Parent’s Leave and Benefit Act 2019]

F54[23. Sick Leave Act 2022]

Part 2 Provisions of Acts of Oireachtas

F56[19. Part 2 of the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2015]

F57[20. F58[…]]

F59[20. Section 6(3) of the Protected Disclosures Act 2014]

F60[21. Sections 127 and 128 of the Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings System Act 2024]

F61[22. Part 3 of the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023

Part 3 Statutory Instruments

F63[11. European Union (Cross-Border Conversions, Mergers and Divisions) Regulations 2023 (S.I. No. 233 of 2023)]

F64[14. European Union (Posting of Workers) Regulations 2016 (S.I. No. 412 of 2016)]

SCHEDULE 2 Repeals and Revocations

Section 8

Part 1 Acts of the Oireachtas

Reference (1)	Number and Year (2)	Short title (3)	Extent of Repeal (4)
1.	No. 26 of 1946	Industrial Relations Act 1946	Sections 45C, 45D and 45E
2.	No. 14 of 1969	Industrial Relations Act 1969	Section 13(1), (4), (5) and (7)
3.	No. 4 of 1973	Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Act 1973	Sections 11 and 13
4.	No. 25 of 1991	Payment of Wages Act 1991	Sections 8 and 9
5.	No. 22 of 1993	Unfair Dismissals (Amendment) Act 1993	Sections 11 and 12
6.	No. 5 of 1994	Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994	Sections 9 and 10
7.	No. 34 of 1994	Maternity Protection Act 1994	Part V (other than sections 30(1), (2), (3), (5) and (6), 32 and 33A)
8.	No. 2 of 1995	Adoptive Leave Act 1995	Part V (other than sections 31, 32(1), (2) and (4) and 33)
9.	No. 16 of 1996	Protection of Young Persons (Employment) Act 1996	Sections 20, 21 and 22
10.	No. 20 of 1997	Organisation of Working Time Act 1997	Sections 8, 27 (other than subsections (1) and (3) ), 29, 30 and 31
11.	No. 30 of 1998	Parental Leave Act 1998	Part IV (other than sections 18(1) and (2) and 21) and sections 24 and 27(5)
12.	No. 5 of 2000	National Minimum Wage Act 2000	Part 5 (other than sections 24, 25, 26, 29, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 and 40)
13.	No. 19 of 2001	Carer’s Leave Act 2001	Part 4 (other than sections 17, 18 and 21) and sections 25 and 32
14.	No. 27 of 2001	Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act 2001	Schedule 1 (other than paragraphs 1(1) and (3), 2 and 3(7) and (8) )
15.	No. 45 of 2001	Protection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act 2001	Section 18
16.	No. 14 of 2002	Competition Act 2002	Schedule 3 (other than paragraphs 2, 3 and 5)
17.	No. 29 of 2003	Protection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act 2003	Part 3 (other than sections 14 and 15)
18.	No. 4 of 2004	Industrial Relations (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2004	Sections 9 (other than subsections (5) and (10) ), 11, 12 and 13
19.	No. 42 of 2004	Health Act 2004	Sections 55M (other than subsections (1), (1A), (2), (3), (4), (6) and (11) ), 55N, 55O and 55P
20.	No. 10 of 2005	Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005	Sections 30 and 31
21.	No. 9 of 2006	Employees (Provision of Information and Consultation) Act 2006	Paragraph 3 of Schedule 3
22.	No. 16 of 2006	Employment Permits Act 2006	Schedule 2 (other than paragraphs 1, 2, 5 and 6)
23.	No. 19 of 2007	Consumer Protection Act 2007	Paragraph 3 of Schedule 6
24.	No. 13 of 2008	Chemicals Act 2008	Section 26 (other than subsections (1), (1A), (2), (3), (5) and (7) )
25.	No. 34 of 2009	National Asset Management Agency Act 2009	Schedule 2 (other than paragraphs 1 and 2)
26.	No. 10 of 2010	Inland Fisheries Act 2010	Schedule 4 (other than paragraphs 1 and 2)
27.	No. 22 of 2011	Criminal Justice Act 2011	Schedule 2 (other than paragraphs 1 and 2)
28.	No. 40 of 2011	Property Services (Regulation) Act 2011	Schedule 4 (other than paragraphs 1, 2 and 3(7) and (8) )
29.	No. 13 of 2012	Protection of Employees (Temporary Agency Work) Act 2012	Schedule 2 (other than paragraphs 1, 2 and 6)
30.	No. 25 of 2013	Further Education and Training Act 2013	Schedule (other than paragraphs 1 and 2)
31.	No. 26 of 2013	Central Bank (Supervision and Enforcement) Act 2013	Schedule 5 (other than paragraphs 1 and 2)
32.	No. 14 of 2014	Protected Disclosures Act 2014	Schedule 2 (other than paragraphs 1 and 2)

Part 2 Statutory Instruments

Reference (1)	Number and Year (2)	Short title (3)	Extent of Repeal (4)
1.	S.I. No. 488 of 2000	European Communities (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2000	Regulation 6
2.	S.I. No. 131 of 2003	European Communities (Protection of Employees on Transfer of Undertakings) Regulations 2003	Regulations 12, 13 and 14
3.	S.I No. 507 of 2006	European Communities (Organisation of Working Time) (Mobile Staff in Civil Aviation) Regulations 2006	Regulation 17
4.	S.I. No. 259 of 2007	European Communities (European Cooperative Society) (Employee Involvement) Regulations 2007	Paragraph 4 of Schedule 2
5.	F65[…]	F65[…]	F65[…]
6.	S.I. No. 157 of 2008	European Communities (Cross-Border Mergers) Regulations 2008	Paragraph 4 of Schedule 2
7.	S.I. No. 377 of 2009	European Communities (Working Conditions of Mobile Workers Engaged in Interoperable Cross Border Services in the Railway Sector) Regulations 2009	Regulation 10
8.	S.I. No. 36 of 2012	European Communities (Road Transport) (Organisation of Working Time of Persons Performing Mobile Road Transport Activities) Regulations 2012	Regulations 20, 21 and 22

SCHEDULE 3 Workplace Relations Commission

Section 10

1. (1) The Commission shall be a body corporate with perpetual succession and an official seal and shall have power to sue, and may be sued, in its corporate name, and shall, with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform have power to acquire, hold and dispose of land or an interest in land, and shall have power to acquire, hold and dispose of any other property.

• (2) The seal of the Commission shall be authenticated by the signatures of both the Director General, and a member of the staff of the Commission authorised by the Board to act in that behalf.

• (3) Judicial notice shall be taken of the seal of the Commission and any document purporting to be an instrument made by, and to be sealed with the seal of, the Commission shall, unless the contrary is shown, be received in evidence and be deemed to be such instrument without further proof.

• (a) a chairperson, and

• (b) 8 ordinary members.

• (2) The chairperson and the ordinary members of the Board shall be appointed by the Minister.

• (3) Of the ordinary members of the Board—

• (a) 2 shall be appointed by the Minister from among persons who, in the opinion of the Minister, represent the interests of employees,

• (b) 2 shall be appointed by the Minister from among persons who, in the opinion of the Minister, represent the interests of employers,

• (c) one shall be appointed by the Minister from among persons who, in the opinion of the Minister, represent the interests of bodies who seek to promote equality in the workplace, and

• (d) 3 shall be appointed by the Minister from among persons who, in the opinion of the Minister, have experience and expertise in relation to workplace relations, resolution of disputes in the workplace, employment law or equality law.

• (4) The Minister shall, in so far as is practicable, endeavour to ensure that among the members of the Board there is an equitable balance between men and women.

• (5)
• (a) The chairperson of the Board shall hold office for the period of 5 years from the date of his or her appointment.

• (b) A member of the Board appointed under clause (a), (b) or (c) of subparagraph (3) shall hold office for the period of 2 years from the date of his or her appointment.

• (c) A member of the Board appointed under clause (d) of subparagraph (3) shall hold office for the period of 3 years from the date of his or her appointment.

• (6) Subject to subparagraph (7), a member (other than the chairperson) of the Board whose term of office expires by the efflux of time shall be eligible for reappointment to the Board.

• (7) A person who is reappointed to the Board in accordance with subparagraph (5) shall not hold office for periods the aggregate of which exceeds 6 years.

• (2) The Minister may at any time remove from office a member of the Board if, in the Minister’s opinion—

• (a) the member has become incapable through ill-health of performing his or her functions,

• (b) the member has committed stated misbehaviour, or

• (c) the member’s removal appears to the Minister to be necessary for the effective performance by the Board of its functions.

• (3) A member of the Board shall cease to be qualified for office and shall cease to hold office if he or she—

• (a) is adjudicated bankrupt,

• (b) makes a composition or arrangement with creditors,

• (c) is sentenced by a court of competent jurisdiction to a term of imprisonment,

• (d) is convicted of any indictable offence in relation to a company,

• (e) is convicted of any indictable offence in relation to a company or any other body corporate,

• (f) is convicted of an offence involving fraud or dishonesty, whether in connection with a company or not, or

• F66[(g) is, or is deemed to be, the subject of an order under section 160 of the Companies Act 1990 or a disqualification order within the meaning of Chapter 4 of Part 14 of the Companies Act 2014.]

• (4) A member of the Board shall, subject to the provisions of this Act, hold office upon such terms and conditions as may be determined by the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.

• (5) There may be paid by the Minister to members of the Board such allowances in respect of expenses (if any) incurred by them as the Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, determine.

• (2) A person appointed to be a member of the Board pursuant to subparagraph (1) shall hold office for that period of the term of office of the member who occasioned the casual vacancy concerned that remains unexpired at the date of his or her appointment and shall, subject to subparagraph (7) of paragraph 2, be eligible for reappointment as a member of the Board on the expiry of the said period.

• (2) The Minister shall fix the date, time and place of the first meeting of the Board.

• (3) At a meeting of the Board—

• (a) the chairperson of the Board shall, if present, be the chairperson of the meeting, or

• (b) if and so long as the chairperson of the Board is not present or if that office is vacant, the other members of the Board who are present shall choose one of their number to be chairperson of the meeting.

• (4) Every question at a meeting of the Board shall be determined by a majority of the votes of the members of the Board present and voting on the question, and, in the case of an equal division of votes, the chairperson shall have a second or casting vote.

• (5) Subject to subparagraph (7), the Board may act notwithstanding one or more vacancies among its members.

• (6) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Board shall regulate its procedure by rules or otherwise.

• (7) The quorum for a meeting of the Board shall, unless the Minister otherwise directs, be 5.

SCHEDULE 4 Enactments Specified for Purposes of section 28

Section 28

Number and Year (1)	Short title (2)	Provision (3)
F67[…]	F67[…]	F67[…]
No. 25 of 1991	Payment of Wages Act 1991	Section 5
No. 34 of 1994	Maternity Protection Act 1994	Section 18
F67[…]	F67[…]	F67[…]
No. 20 of 1997	Organisation of Working Time Act 1997	Sections 6(2), 11, 12, 13, 14(1), 15(1), 16(2), 17, 18, 19(1), 19(1A), 21, 22 and 23(1) and (2)
No. 19 of 2001	Carer’s Leave Act 2001	Section 13(2)
No. 13 of 2012	Protection of Employees (Temporary Agency Work) Act 2012	Section 14
F68[No. 14 of 2014	Protected Disclosures Act 2014	Section 6(3)]

SCHEDULE 5 Provisions and Enactments Specified for Purposes of Part 4

Section 41

Part 1

F69[3. Sections 4B(1) and (2), 4C and 5 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991]

F70[4. Section 3, 4, 5, 6, 6C, 6D, 6E, 6F or 6G of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994]

F72[29. A registered employment agreement within the meaning of Chapter 2 of Part 2 of the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2015

F73[31. Sections 127 and 128 of the Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings System Act 2024]

F74[32. Subsection (3), (4) or (5) of section 5 or section 8, as the case may be, of the Employment (Contractual Retirement Ages) Act 2025]

Part 2

F76[7. Regulation 89(1) of the European Union (Cross-Border Conversions, Mergers and Divisions) Regulations 2023 (S.I. No. 233 of 2023)]

F77[11. A sectoral employment order within the meaning of Chapter 3 of Part 2 of the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2015]

Part 3

F78[6. Parts 2 and 3 of the Paternity Leave and Benefit Act 2016]

F79[7. Parts 2 and 3 of the Parent’s Leave and Benefit Act 2019]

F80[8. Sick Leave Act 2022]

F81[9. Part 3 of the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023.]

SCHEDULE 6 Relevant Redress Provision

Sections 41 and 44

Part 1 Decisions of Adjudication Officers

Acts of Oireachtas