Workplace Relations Act 2015

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Amendment of Protection of Employees (Employers’ Insolvency) Act 1984

81. (1) Section 1 of the Act of 1984 is amended, in subsection (1), by the insertion of the following definition:

“ ‘Act of 2015’ means the Workplace Relations Act 2015;”.

(2) Section 6 of the Act of 1984 is amended—

(a) in subparagraph (xxx) of paragraph (a) of subsection (2), by the deletion of “and” after “that Schedule,”,

(b) in subparagraph (xxxi) of that paragraph, by the substitution of “that Schedule, and” for “that Schedule.”,

(c) in that paragraph, by the insertion of the following subparagraph (inserted by paragraph 6 of Schedule 2 of the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 ):

“(xxxii) any amount that an employer within the meaning of the Act of 2015 is required to pay by virtue of a decision of an adjudication officer or the Labour Court under Part 4 of that Act.”,

(d) in paragraph (b) of subsection (2), by the substitution of “, (xxxi) or (xxxii) ” for “or (xxxi) ”,

(e) in paragraph (c) of subsection (2), by—

(i) the substitution of “, (xxxi) or (xxxii) ” for “or (xxxi) ”, and

(ii) the substitution of the following subparagraph for subparagraph (i):

“(i) the decision or recommendation, as appropriate, of the rights commissioner, or the decision of the adjudication officer under Part 4 of the Act of 2015,”,

and

(f) in the definition of “relevant date” in subsection (9), by the substitution of “, (xxxi) or (xxxii) ” for “or (xxxi) ”.

(3) Section 9 of the Act of 1984 is amended by—

(a) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1):

“(1) A person who has applied for a payment—

(a) under section 6 of a debt described in subparagraph (i), (ii) or (iv) of subsection (2)(a) of that section, or

(b) to be made under section 7 of this Act into the resources of a pension scheme,

may present a complaint to the Director General that—

(i) the Minister has failed to make such payment, or

(ii) any such payment made by the Minister is less than the amount that the Minister is required to pay under section 6 or 7, as may be appropriate.”,

(b) the insertion of the following subsections:

“(1A) The Director General shall refer a complaint presented to him or her under subsection (1) for adjudication by an adjudication officer.

(1B) An adjudication officer shall not entertain a complaint referred to him or her under this section if it has been presented to the Director General after the expiration of the period of 6 months beginning on the date of the decision by the Minister in relation to the application to which the complaint relates.

(1C) An adjudication officer may entertain a complaint to which this section applies presented to the Director General after the expiration of the period referred to in subsection (1B) (but not later than 6 months after such expiration) if he or she is satisfied that the failure to present the complaint within that period was due to reasonable cause.”,

(c) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (3):

“(3) Where a claim for payment is made under section 6 or 7 and it appears to the Minister that a doubt exists as to whether or not such claim is allowable (in whole or in part), he may refer any matter arising in connection with the claim to the Director General, and the Director General shall refer the matter for adjudication by an adjudication officer.”,

(d) the substitution, in subsection (4), of “adjudication officer” for “Tribunal” and “he” for “it”,

(e) the insertion of the following subsection:

“(6) In this section—

‘adjudication officer’ has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2015; and

‘Director General’ means the Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission.”,

and

(f) the deletion of subsections (2) and (5).

(4) The following section is inserted in the Act of 1984:

“Appeal to Labour Court from declaration of adjudication officer under section 9

9A. Section 44 of the Act of 2015 shall apply to a decision of an adjudication officer given in relation to a complaint under section 9 as it applies to a decision of an adjudication officer given in proceedings under section 41 of that Act, subject to the following modifications:

(a) the reference in subsection (1) of the said section 44 to—

(i) proceedings under section 41 shall be construed as a reference to a complaint under section 9 of this Act,

(ii) those proceedings shall be construed as a reference in relation to that complaint;

and

(b) any other necessary modifications.”.

(5) In this section “Act of 1984” means the Protection of Employees (Employers’ Insolvency) Act 1984 .