Vol. 415 No. 1
244 Mr. J. Higgins asked the Minister for Labour the reason for the delay in making payments to a person (details supplied) in County Mayo as awarded by the Employment Appeals Tribunal under the Unfair Dismissals Act, 1977 and the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Act, 1973.
The Employment Appeals Tribunal made awards to the employee concerned against the employer under the Unfair Dismissals Act, 1977 and the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Act, 1973. To date the employer has failed to pay the awards to the employee and the employee referred the matter to my Department in October 1991. Under the provisions of the representative Acts, the Minister for Labour may institute proceedings for the recovery of such sums from a defaulting employer. I am prepared to exercise this discretion and to pursue, subject to legal advice, the employer concerned for the sums owing. In this connection, papers in the case have been submitted recently to my legal advisers for consideration as to the institution of such proceedings. I have asked my legal advisers to deal with the case as expeditiously as possible.
