Industrial Relations Act 1990

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What is the difference in an employer and an employee?

Employer is a person who pays one or more people to work for him.

Worker or Employee is the person who works for pay or had previously worked for pay. For the purpose of this act this excludes certain members of the public service including the Garda Síochána.

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Purpose of Industrial Relations Act 1990

This act aims to promote improved industrial

relations by outlining procedures for conducting and settling industrial disputes..

This act protects all of us at This act protects all of us at workwork.

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Main provisions of the Industrial Relations Act 1990

Procedures for the calling of industrial action Procedures for the conducting of pickets The establishment of the Labour Relations

Commission Changes in how the Labour Court functioned

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What is Industrial Action? Any action taken by a group of employees to compel

their employer to change their working conditions or implement the conditions already in place if this is not happening.

Note this does not just mean going on strike, it can also be a work to rule, where the workers only do what is in their contract.

It is not in my contract that I do the drains

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I work in the office

What is a strike?

This is a complete cessation of work by a group of employees done as a means of compelling their employer, to listen to their demands to change their working conditions.

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What is a trade dispute?

Any dispute between employers and employees in connection with their employment or non-employment, or the terms and conditions affecting the employees.

Examples of legitimate trade disputes are disputes over rates of pay, shift working, holidays, canteen facilities, recruitment policy,dismissal policy, redundancy policy or

trade union recognition in the firm. Examples of illegitimate trade disputes are conflicts over

religious or political issues among staff or disputes over managerial decisions of how the company is run, for example the credit policy of the firm.

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What does immunity mean?

This means the workers cannot be sued for the lack of production during a strike, neither will they be sued for damage caused by their absence.

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Workers cannot be sued, due to this

chair being damaged, as a

result of lack of usage during the

strike.

What is a trade union?

This is an organisation that workers can join to help them look after their rights and speak with a collective voice.

All trade unions must be registered with the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and fulfil the requirements set by this minister before they can act as a trade union.

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What does this act say about strikes?

All members that will be involved in the strike or industrial action are given notice of a forthcoming ballot.

Members must be free to vote as they wish and how each member votes must be a secret.

If the vote is in favour of industrial action, then the trade union must notify the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) of it's intentions and get their approval.

If the trade union decides on a strike, it must then give notice of not less than 1 week to the employer concerned, of it's intention to engage in a strike.

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What is the difference in an official and unofficial strike?

If the procedures outlined in the last slide are followed before the strike starts, the strike is called an Official Strike and the employees have immunity against being sued for damage done by the strike or losses caused by it.

A strike that does not follow all these procedures is called an Unofficial Strike and employees have no immunity.

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Official Strike

Unofficial Strike

Primary Picketing

According to this act is the right of the employees to conduct a peaceful picket at their employer's business premises.

The employees can be joined by a trade union official, that is someone paid by the union or any officer elected by the union.

They can peacefully persuade other workers or customers not to enter their employee's premises, but cannot prevent them.

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Secondary Picketing

If the striking workers see that work that would normally be carried out at their premises is being carried out elsewhere, thus reducing the impact of the strike, they can picket those premises. This is called Secondary Picketing.

An example of this is, if the staff at Dublin airport were on strike and in order to reduce the impact of the strike, the airlines started to divert the passengers to Cork airport, the union could then place a secondary picket on Cork airport.

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Labour Relations Commission (LRC)

It is the first port of call to settle any trade dispute.

Its functions include the following: Conciliation serviceAdvisory Service (Codes of practice)Rights CommissionersJoint Labour Committees (JLC's)Joint Industrial Councils (JIC's)Research

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Conciliation

This is where the two parties in a dispute are brought together and suggestions made, as to how the dispute can be settled.

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Rights Commissioner Appointed by the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment

from nominations made by the Labour Relations Commission. Aims to investigate and offer quick solutions to settle disputes,

grievances and claims made by individuals or small groups of workers under different legislation.

Including this act , the Unfair Dismissals Act 1993, Adoptive Leave Act, 1995, Maternity Protection Act, 1994 and National Minimum Wage Act, 2000.

Disputes involving large numbers of workers will not be heard by a Rights Commissioner. Hearings before a Rights Commissioner are normally heard in private.

Appeals of decisions made by the Rights Commissioner under the Unfair Dismissals Act are then brought to the Employment Appeals Tribunal and those brought under other legislation are brought to the Labour Court.

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Joint Labour Committees (JLC's)

The LRC provides officers to chair JLC's. These bodies examine conditions of

employment, for example wages for certain categories of workers, who are not in trade unions.

Examples of JLC's are in the hairdressing and the catering industries.

Their recommendations are called Employment Employment Regulation Orders (ERO's).Regulation Orders (ERO's).

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Joint Industrial Councils (JIC's)

The LRC provides officers to chair JIC's. These bodies seek to establish harmonious industrial relations in certain industries and outline procedures to be followed in those industries to solve disputes before a strike occurs

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Labour Court

The Labour Court, while not a court of law, operates as an industrial relations tribunal, hearing both side of the dispute and issuing recommendations, which are not binding in most cases, but both parties are expected to give serious consideration to their content.

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Functions of the Labour Court Hears appeals from Rights Commissioners. These decisions

are binding. Establishes Joint Labour Committees (JLC's). See Labour

Relations Commission page for details of these. Registers Joint Industrial Councils. (JIC's). See Labour

Relations Commission page for details of these. Registers and interprets employment agreements. Investigates complaints of breaches of employment agreements

registered with them. Hears appeals of decisions made under the Employment

Equality Act 1998 by an Employment Tribunal. These decisions are binding.

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Industrial Relations Act 1990

The end