The Workplace Relations Reform Project

Abstract

Prior to October 1 2015, the system for resolving individual workplace related disputes in Ireland was both bewildering and confusing. Workers were faced with overlapping points of entry and bifurcated routes of appeal. The Workplace Relations Act 2015 seeks to remedy this by providing a single point of entry (the Workplace Relations Commission) and a single route of appeal (the Labour Court). This involves the dissolution of the Labour Relations Commission and the Employment Appeals Tribunal and the transfer of functions from Rights Commissioners, the Equality Tribunal and the National Employment Rights Authority to the Commission. This article outlines the background to the reform project and analyses the changes brought about by the 2015 Act.