I propose to take Questions Nos. 169 to 171, inclusive, together.
The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) is an independent, statutory body which was established on 1st October 2015 under the Workplace Relations Act 2015. The WRC assumes the roles and functions previously carried out by the National Employment Rights Authority (NERA), Equality Tribunal (ET), Labour Relations Commission (LRC), and the first-instance functions of the Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT).
As the WRC was established late in the fiscal year of 2015, the budgets of the individual workplace relations bodies remained unchanged until the following year. The pay/non-pay budget allocations of the individual workplace relations bodies which were amalgamated to form the WRC in 2015, were as follows:
Table 1:
Pay and non-pay budget allocation for Workplace Relations Bodies 2015:
2015
|
Non- pay €000
|
Pay €000
|
Total €000
|
National Employment Rights Authority (NERA)
|
862
|
5,183
|
6,045
|
Labour Relations Commission (LRC)
|
814
|
4,130
|
4,944
|
Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT)
|
422
|
2,960
|
3,382
|
Equality Tribunal (ET)
|
239
|
1,460
|
1,699
|
Table 2:
WRC budget allocation for pay and non-pay in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020.
Workplace Relations Commission (WRC)
|
Non- pay €000
|
Pay €000
|
Total €000
|
2016
|
2,489
|
10,081
|
12,570
|
2017
|
2,314
|
11,065
|
13,379
|
2018
|
2,314
|
11,700
|
14,014
|
2019
|
2,614
|
12,340
|
14,954
|
2020
|
2,614
|
12,340
|
14,954
|
The WRC’s Inspection and Enforcement Division carries out inspections of employer records with a view to determining compliance with employment rights legislations. These inspections arise
- In response to complaints received of alleged non-compliance with relevant employment rights legislation;
- As part of compliance campaigns which focus on compliance in specific sectors or specific pieces of legislation, or
- As routine inspections, which act as a control measure.
The aim is to achieve voluntary compliance with employment law through the provision of education and awareness, inspection of employers’ employment records and enforcement where necessary. Table 3 sets out the number of inspectors employed at the WRC in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and to date in 2019.
Table 3:
The number of workplace relations inspectors employed at the end of 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and to date in 2019 is as follows:
Number of Inspectors in WRC
|
2015
|
2016
|
2017
|
2018
|
To date in 2019
|
HEO/AO Inspection Team Managers
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
7
|
6
|
Executive Officer Inspectors:
|
48
|
48
|
51
|
49
|
49
|
The Labour Court is an independent statutory body under the aegis of my Department. In addition to its role of court of last resort in industrial relations cases, with the enactment of the Workplace Relations Act 2015, the Labour Court is now also the sole appellate body in employment rights cases.
Both the Labour Court and the WRC are staffed by civil servants of my Department. In addition, the WRC’s adjudication services are supplemented by a cohort of 44 independent external adjudicators. The Labour Court also has a cohort of 13 statutory appointees of Chairman, Deputy Chairs and Ordinary Members who constitute the tripartite adjudicating Divisions of the Labour Court.
Details of the staff employed by the WRC and the Labour Court at the end of 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and to date in 2019 are set out in Tables 4 and 5 respectively.
Table 4:
The number of staff employed by the WRC at the end of 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and to date in 2019, is as follows:
Number staff in the WRC
|
2015
|
2016
|
2017
|
2018
|
To date in 2019
|
Headcount
|
168
|
162
|
173
|
182
|
183
|
Full time equivalents (FTE)
|
159.96
|
154.36
|
165.09
|
174.64
|
175.1
|
Table 5:
The number of staff employed by the Labour Court at the end of 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and to date in 2019, is as follows:
Labour Court Staff*
|
2015
|
2016
|
2017
|
2018
|
To date in 2019
|
Headcount
|
28
|
29
|
32
|
33
|
34
|
FTE
|
25.5
|
26.5
|
30.4
|
30.6
|
32
|
*Numbers include statutory appointees of Chairman, Deputy Chairmen and Ordinary Members.
My Department has initiated the process to recruit additional adjudicators and to fill inspector vacancies at the WRC in 2020 and will continue to work closely with the WRC and the Labour Court monitoring the staffing and budgetary requirements of both bodies to ensure that they are supported and adequately resourced to fulfil their roles.