Critical Analysis of Irish Employment Legislations: Key Acts and Cases

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of three critical employment legislations in Ireland: the Unfair Dismissals Act 1977, the Employment Equality Acts 1998-2015, and the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2015. It examines the key features of each act, including the protections afforded to employees, the circumstances under which unfair dismissal claims can be made, and the provisions for promoting equality and preventing discrimination. The report also includes detailed analyses of relevant case law, such as Bank of Ireland v Reilly (2015), Andrew Troy v John Player and Sons Limited (2016), DHL Express (Ireland) Ltd DHL vs Michael Coughlan (2017), Nano Nagle School v Marie Daly [2015], and Freshways Food Company and SIPTU (2016), to illustrate the practical application of these laws and the outcomes of legal disputes. The report concludes by highlighting the significance of these legislations in shaping employee rights and the evolution of employment law in Ireland.

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Law of Business Organization
Employment Legislations
01-Nov-17
(Student Details: )

EMPLOYMENT LEGISLATIONS 2
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Unfair Dismissals Act 1977.............................................................................................................2
Analysis of Act............................................................................................................................2
Analysis of Cases.........................................................................................................................2
Employment Equality Acts 1998 to 2015........................................................................................2
Analysis of Act............................................................................................................................2
Nano Nagle School v Marie Daly................................................................................................2
Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2015...................................................................................2
Analysis of Act............................................................................................................................2
Freshways Food Company and SIPTU........................................................................................2
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................2
References........................................................................................................................................2

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Introduction
Employment law is the legislation through which the relationship of an employee and employer
is governed. Through the employment laws, the employees know what to expect from the
employer and the rights which are available to them (Countouris, 2016). In Ireland, employment
law is not a sole legislation and consists of different laws, which have been drawn to protect the
employee rights (Citizens Information, 2016a). In the following parts, three of these legislations
have been explained, in context of their key features and the cases associated with them, to show
that these three laws play a crucial role in development of employment rights in Ireland.
Unfair Dismissals Act 1977
Analysis of Act
The Unfair Dismissals Acts 1977–2015 is a key piece of legislation which protects the
employees from being dismissed without being given proper reasons and notice. This act
provides the circumstances in which the unfair dismissal can take place. Where an employer
terminates the employment contract with or without notice; or where the employment contract is
terminated owing to the employer’s conduct, an unfair dismissal can take place (Redmond,
2007). Where an employee is dismissed from the employment, in some specific situations, a
claim of unfair dismissal can be brought against the employer. The unfair dismissal legislation
does not necessarily protect an individual from the dismissal but a system of appeal is provided
in which a person can question the fairness of the dismissal once the same has taken place
(Moffat, 2011).

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There is a need to show that the person is qualified to bring a claim under the Unfair Dismissal
Act. When this is done, the employer has to accept that there had been a dismissal and it lies on
the employer to show that there had been fair grounds for dismissal. And unless the employer
can show the major grounds to justify a dismissal, the dismissal is deemed as unfair (Cobb,
2017). The legislation allows an employer to ask the employer to provide the reasons for
dismissal in a written statement and the reply to this request has to be given by the employer
within a period of fourteen days from the request. In case it is established that an employee has
been dismissed in an unfair manner, the employee can be placed back to the job, but it is more
likely to get compensation from the employer for the loss of earnings which the employee had to
bear as a result of dismissal (Kruppe, Rogowski and Schömann, 2013).
There are certain cases in which the dismissal by the employee is deemed automatically unfair
where the dismissal of an employee takes place for the following reasons: political or religious
opinions; age, sexual orientation, membership of a community, race, or colour; membership of
trade union of engaged in trade union activities, be it within a office hours or outside; unfair
selection for redundancy; breastfeeding, pregnancy or giving birth, or any other matter related to
birth or pregnancy; and availing rights under force majeure leave, parental leave, carer’s leave,
paternity leave, adoptive leave and maternity leave (Citizens Information, 2016b).
Analysis of Cases
Traditionally, the Irish tribunals and courts used to award compensation to the employees who
have been unfairly dismissed. Reinstatement and re-engagement was not something which
occurred owing to the irretrievable damage caused to the employee-employer relationship.
However, there has been a rise in the number of reinstatements in the recent times. This is

EMPLOYMENT LEGISLATIONS 5
because at times compensation does not seem to be effective in getting back the lost chance of
the employee and thus, the courts have changed their approach to give better result to this
legislation (Global Legal Insight, 2017). Bank of Ireland v Reilly (2015) IEHC241 was a recent
decision in which the High Court ordered the reinstatement of the former employee of the Bank
of Ireland as it was held that he had been dismissed from his job six years before just for
breaching the email policy of the bank with regards to the contended dissemination of
inappropriate emails, as the court held that this dismissal was disproportionate and unreasonable
(Court Services Ireland, 2015).
Redundancy is not deemed as a reason contributing to unfair dismissal, however, there has to be
genuine redundancy for this purpose. In the case of Andrew Troy v John Player and Sons
Limited (2016), it was held by the EAT that there was a lack of genuine redundancy situation and
so, in 2013, the dismissal of the employee which took place, was an unfair one. And as a result
of this, Troy was ordered to be reinstated (Global Legal Insight, 2017).
The act is a very significant piece of legislation and does provide adequate protection to the
employees. This is because the act provides that in case of an unfair dismissal, based on section 7
of this act, the aggrieved party has to be awarded damages, which is the amount of two years of
remuneration of the employee. However, the court have gone beyond in certain cases, where in
order to adequately protect the employee, the court has used its discretion to uphold the spirit of
the law, instead of its letter. In the case of DHL Express (Ireland) Ltd DHL vs Michael Coughlan
(2017) UDD1738, the court awarded Coughlan a sum of €72,042.88 as compensation for unfair
dismissal (Workplace Relations, 2017). Even when the employers may criticize the same for
being too stringent, the kind of protection offered to the employees’ rights proves that this
legislation is a crucial one, with regards to the employee rights.

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Employment Equality Acts 1998 to 2015
Analysis of Act
With regards to the protection of the rights of an employee, another substantial legislation is the
Employment Equality Acts 1998-2015. This act has the objective of promoting equality; banning
victimisation; banning discrimination particularly on nine specific grounds; banning sexual and
any other form of harassment; making proper facilities for the people with disabilities with
regards to the access to employment, getting trained and advancing in employment; and allowing
the positive actions to be undertaken for making certain that everyone gets proper equality on the
nine specified grounds. The act not only applies to the permanent but to the part time and
temporary employees as well, in additional to the trade unions, employment agencies, and trade
unions (IHREC, 2017).
The act puts a restriction on the employers from discrimination against the employees and the
nine grounds includes dismissal, collective agreements, classification of posts, equal pay,
advertising, access to employment, terms and conditions of employment, vocational training and
work experience, and promotion of re-grading. Under the equality law, discrimination has been
given specific meaning (Strong, 2017). As per this act, a positive action can be taken by the
employer, which is not a requirement under the law for promoting equality amongst the workers.
Under the employment equality acts, the term discrimination has been defined as a certain person
being treated in a more or less favourable manner than the others, on the basis of the situations
surrounding the nine grounds. Discrimination can be both direct and indirect, and both of these
are restricted under this act (Citizens Information, 2016c).

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Nano Nagle School v Marie Daly
The ability of terminating the employee’s employment of the employer on the basis of incapacity
grounds owing to disability was taken into consideration in the case of Nano Nagle School v
Marie Daly [2015] IEHC 785 by the High Court. In this case, an appeal had been made from the
Labour Court on the points of law. A special needs assistant was the claimant in this case who
had been paralysed after she was involved in a car accident. And an application was made for
resuming the work. The employment of the claimant had been terminated by the by the school on
the basis that the claimant would not be able to continue their full duties of an assistant and thus,
was medically unfit for position (Moran & Ryan Solicitors, 2016).
Firstly, a claim was made in Equality Tribunal followed by Labour Court. It was held by the
Labour Court that there had been a failure on part of the school in fulfilling its obligations for
considering the proper measures which could be adopted for allowing the return to employment
by the claimant. However, the High Court dismissed the appealed and stated that the school had
wrongly interpreted section 16 of the Employment Equality Acts, where the adaption of patters
of working time, along with the distribution of tasks is included. And so, the ambit of the
determination of Labour Court was narrowed by the decision of the High Court regarding the
role needing redesigning as a requirement of reasonable accommodation, which surely goes
beyond the obligation of employers under this act (Doyle, 2016).
Hence, the High Court upheld the validity of the act and denied the court the option of going
beyond the act. This is also important as this proves that the court will only go beyond the text of
law, when the same does not prove to be unfair for the other party, i.e., the employer.

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Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2015
Analysis of Act
Another crucial legislation which has empowered the employees’ rights is the Industrial
Relations (Amendment) Act 2015. This act introduced major changes to the laws regarding
collective bargaining and amends the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Acts 2001–2004.
Through the new act, the Labour Court has been given the power of imposing binding conditions
and terms in situations where the employer does not recognize collective bargaining. This act has
expanded the Registered Employment Agreements’ place in the Irish law and has also brought
forward the concept of Sectoral Employment Orders. The case of Ryanair Limited v Labour
Court and Ors [2007] IESC 6 narrowed the useful of the previous industrial relation acts, and
this was done to such extent that the acts fell in disuse. Through the 2015 Act, a new life had
been given to the industrial relation actions and in some situations to the Labour Court where the
employer fails to engage in collective bargaining for making binding determinations to certain
terms (Global Legal Insight, 2017).
Freshways Food Company and SIPTU
The first recommendation of the Labour Court under the 2015 Act was issued in the case of
Freshways Food Company and SIPTU (21016) (LCR 21242). In this case, a claim had been
brought forward by the SIPTU on behalf of 50 employees against the company based on 2015
act. It was submitted by the employer that it had engaged in collective bargaining with the staff
representative group, which had been formed internally for dealing with the employment related
issues and it was argued by the employer that the same amounted to an excepted body under the
new act. However, the contention of the employer had been rejected by the Court regarding the

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company being engaged in collective bargaining with the excepted body since this group only
attempted to negotiate the terms on the basis of the employees and not for the members only.
Even though there was presence of ample evidence for showing that there had been no excepted
body, it was emphasised by the court that the employer had to demonstrate that there was a
practice of collective bargaining and not a single isolated incident (Given, 2016).
Conclusion
Thus, from the discussion carried on above, it can be clearly stated that the three employment
laws, i.e., Unfair Dismissals Acts, Employment Equality Acts, and Industrial Relations
(Amendment) Act are substantial legislations which have expanded the employee rights in the
nation. Through the unfair discrimination act, the employee is given the right to be protected
from being dismissed without proper cause and the employer has the right of claiming a
reinstatement, or compensation, depending upon their choice. This is particularly significant as
by opting for reinstatement, the employee does not lose his employment prospects. The
Employment Equality Acts gives the employee the right to be protected from any and all kind of
discrimination at work place and where the same is threatened, the employees can make a case in
the court of law, to get their rights upheld by the employer. However, this act does not become
discriminatory towards employers, just to protect the employees, as was seen from the case
discussed above. Lastly, the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act gives the employees the right
to collective bargain, so that their rights are not lost. This act is particularly significant for
bringing useful to the industrial relations act which had been narrowed down earlier through a
ruling of Supreme Court.

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References
Citizens Information. (2016a) Employment law update. [Online] Citizens Information. Available
from: http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/employment/employment_rights_and_conditions/
employment_rights_and_duties/employment_law_update.html [Accessed on: 01/11/2017]
Citizens Information. (2016b) Unfair dismissal. [Online] Citizens Information. Available from:
http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/employment/unemployment_and_redundancy/dismissal/
unfair_dismissal.html [Accessed on: 01/11/2017]
Citizens Information. (2016c) Equality in the workplace. [Online] Citizens Information.
Available from:
http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/employment/equality_in_work/equality_in_the_workplace.
html [Accessed on: 01/11/2017]
Cobb, E.P. (2017) Workplace Bullying and Harassment: New Developments in International
Law. Oxon: Routledge.
Countouris, N. (2016) The Contract of Employment. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Court Services Ireland. (2015) Bank of Ireland -v- Reilly. [Online] Court Services Ireland.
Available from: http://www.courts.ie/Judgments.nsf/09859e7a3f34669680256ef3004a27de/
1f24dbfd107692e580257e31004e3c85?OpenDocument [Accessed on: 01/11/2017]
Doyle, M. (2016) Reasonable accommodations for disabled employees – how far must an
employer go?. [Online] Arthur Cox. Available from:
http://www.arthurcox.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Reasonable-accommodations-for-

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01/11/2017]
Given, S. (2016) Trade union intervention in non-union companies - Where next after
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Global Legal Insight. (2017) Employment & Labour Law 2017. [Online] Global Legal Insight.
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[Accessed on: 01/11/2017]
IHREC. (2017) The Employment Equality Acts 1998-2015 – A Summary. [Online] IHREC.
Available from: https://www.ihrec.ie/guides-and-tools/human-rights-and-equality-for-
employers/what-does-the-law-say/the-employment-equality-acts-1998-2015-a-summary/
[Accessed on: 01/11/2017]
Kruppe, T., Rogowski, R., and Schömann, K. (2013) Labour Market Efficiency in the European
Union: Employment Protection and Fixed Term Contracts. Oxon: Routledge.
Moffatt, J. (2011) Employment Law. 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Moran & Ryan Solicitors. (2016) Nano Nagle School v. Marie Daly [2015] IEHC 785. [Online]
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daly-2015-iehc-785/ [Accessed on: 01/11/2017]
Redmond, M. (2007) Dismissal Law in Ireland. 2nd ed. Haywards Heath: Tottel Publishing.

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Strong, S.I. (2017) Transforming Religious Liberties: A New Theory of Religious Rights for
National and International Legal Systems. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Workplace Relations. (2017) Full Recommendation. [Online] Workplace Relations. Available
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