The National Employment Rights Authority aims to achieve voluntary compliance with employment law through the provision of education and awareness, inspection of employers’ employment records and enforcement where necessary. While every effort is made to secure compliance, some employers either refuse or fail to rectify the breaches identified and/or pay money due to their employees. These employers are referred for prosecution.
Where people have concerns that workers may be exploited or are receiving less than their statutory entitlement the matter should be reported to NERA for investigation. Information Officers of the Workplace Relations Customer Service phone service on 1890 80 80 90 also provide impartial information on a wide variety of employment rights legislation to both employees and employers by telephone, in writing and by email.
NERA does not keep records in relation to the marginal costs incurred in carrying out an inspection. The figures for costs included in the table below are the total costs incurred by NERA in relation to the discharge of the entirety of its functions, namely in relation to information, inspection, enforcement, prosecution and protection of young persons.
|
*
|
2009
|
2010
|
2011
|
2012 (to 31 Oct)
|
|
Inspections
|
*
|
*
|
*
|
*
|
|
No. of Inspections concluded
|
8,859
|
7,164
|
5,591
|
3,660
|
|
No. Compliant Inspections
|
7,628
|
5,248
|
3,970
|
2,627
|
|
Prosecutions
|
*
|
*
|
*
|
*
|
|
No. of Prosecutions initiated
|
87
|
89
|
56
|
34
|
|
No. of Convictions
|
16
|
25
|
28
|
18
|
|
NERA Cost
|
*
|
*
|
*
|
*
|
|
Pay
|
€6,544,897
|
€5,614,194
|
€5,276,713
|
€4,512,470
|
|
Non-pay
|
€1,391,386
|
€1,320,224
|
€1,360,613
|
€805,650
|
|
Total Cost
|
€7,935,786
|
€6,934,977
|
€6,637,326
|
€5,318,120
|
|
Staff
|
*
|
*
|
*
|
*
|
|
Total staff
|
119
|
108
|
104
|
104
|
|
Number of Inspectors
|
71
|
66
|
61
|
58
|
