The Workplace Relations Act 2015 - A New Dawn?

Introduction

The much-debated Workplace Relations Act, 2015 ("the Act") which comes into operation on 1 October 2015 will apply to employment legislation and equal treatment legislation and provides for the resolution, mediation and adjudication of employment disputes and complaints. The Act contains a number of novel provisions and it will be interesting to see how it operates in practice. The Act will wipe away the existing dispute resolution infrastructure of the Employment Appeals Tribunal and the Equality Tribunal and replace them with a new Workplace Relations Commission ("the Commission" or "the WRC"). The Labour Court will hear any appeals from the Commission.

The Act creates a number of offences and provides that where an employee is employed by a corporate entity, a prosecution may be brought against a director, manager, secretary or other officer where the offence is committed with their consent or connivance. As to sanctions, in addition to any fine,