Why it's important for clients to use the Peninsula Advice Service in 2014

The last three years has seen some substantial changes in Irish employment law in respect of employment legislation, case law and the reform of the dispute resolution process. With all such comings and goings, keeping up to date with your employment law obligations and responsibilities can be difficult. Therefore, there’s never been a better time to identify the benefits the Peninsula 24 Hour Advice Service can have for your business. 24 hour Advice Service The Peninsula Advice service is available to you 24 hours a day and can be invaluable in resolving any employment problems that you are facing. Our professional consultants are varied in terms of experience and expertise and are likely to have dealt with a similar situation before. On the slight chance that they have not dealt with a similar situation, they will have the experience and sources of information available to provide prompt and effective advice. Insurance Protection It is part of our insurance scheme that Peninsula will fund the cost of awards made against your business. As with any insurance cover, the policy conditions must be followed. One of those conditions is that you have sought advice promptly from the Advice line before any action is taken, or as soon as matters become known, and you follow the advice that has been given. It is a vital part of the insurance that the advisors are kept informed of developments and further advice, at every stage until the issue is resolved. If action is taken without seeking further advice and it is not the correct procedure that should be followed, this may be detrimental to resolving the case in your favour. 2014; The Year of Hope As 2013 was a year of economic difficulty for many employers, a large focus was placed on redundancy, lay-off, reduced hours, pay cuts etc. However, we have seen some positivity reflected not only on a national scale in terms of exiting the bail out, but also at a local scale here at peninsula where we have received far greater calls on recruitment than we have in quite some time. No matter what situation you find your business in, our advisors can give you the advice you need to ensure that you follow the correct procedure. If you have any queries or concerns, in relation to employment law or human resource, please remember to call the advice line on 01 855 50 50 to get effective and efficient answers, to ensure that your policy is intact and to ensure that you abide by the correct procedures. Doing so will ensure that your Company is a little risk of a claim. Employment Law and HR Updates With regular changes in Employment law, the Advice team receives all relevant law reports and new legislation as they are published. They also review new case law to ensure that they are providing you with the most up-to-date and accurate advice as possible. The consultants take account of current best practice as well as the latest available information when giving you advice. The Advice system should be used for any employment law or human resource query or concern that you have. That concern may be on a serious industrial dispute or it can be a day to day routine query. We cover a range of issues such as recruitment, wages, performance management and matters that lead to discipline, grievances or employment litigation. The advice team not only offers advice, but our consultants will also draft appropriate letters for you to issue to your employees.  If you do not wish to follow the correct legal procedures, our advisers will offer you commercial advice on the best possible approach to take to protect you as much as possible. So What Can We Expect in 2014? It is always important to keep abreast of the key employment law updates and what to expect down the line. Here, we outline what you may expect to impact upon your workplace in 2013: (1) Collective Bargaining: Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore announced at the Labour Party’s National Conference that the Government will begin the process of legislating in the coming weeks to give employees the right to engage in collective bargaining. In the address, Mr. Gilmore spoke about the importance of people having “better security in their jobs decent working conditions, and better opportunities”. He said Labour had agreed in the Programme for Government to reform the current law on employee rights to engage in collective bargaining, so as to ensure State compliance with judgements of the European Court of Human Rights and added that the Government will being the process of legislating for that commitment in the coming weeks. Employers need to be cognisant that any change in this area may mean the imposition of mandatory trade union recognition in certain circumstances so this is an area that every employer should pay close attention to. (2) Employment Permits Bill In a response to the publicity generated from the Hussein v The Labour Court and Younis case, the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation confirmed that legislation aimed at protecting undocumented migrant workers is being progressed as a matter of priority. In the aforementioned case, the High Court overturned a Rights Commissioner's award of €91,134 in favour of a foreign national employed as a restaurant worker. The Court held that the employee’s contract of employment was substantively illegal in the absence of the appropriate employment permit and that he was therefore not entitled to the award. The legislation will seek to protect these migrant workers whose employment in Ireland is unlawful by reason of not having a work permit and will come into force as of 1 January, 2014. (3) Protected Disclosures in the Public Interest (Whistleblowers) Bill In the words of Brendan Howlin, this Bill will protect those who speak out against wrongdoing, or cover-ups, whether in public or the private sector. Generally known as the ‘Whistleblowers Bill’, the Government hopes that the legislation will protect whistleblowers from retaliation and victimisation relating to their disclosure.  This disclosure could encompass, for example, criminal misconduct, corruption, the breach of a legal obligation, risk to health and safety, damage to the environment or gross mismanagement in the public service. The proposed legislation highlights the responsibility of employers, to put effective internal mechanisms in place to investigate whistleblowing complaints and to develop an organisational culture that supports whistleblowing as a key element of corporate risk management overall, in order to identify potential wrongdoing and take appropriate corrective action at the earliest possible stage. (4) Tribunal Reform Most employers will be aware that there has been significant reform of the current tribunal system and dispute resolution process in Ireland. The key and principal change in this process is anticipated to occur in Spring 2014 where it is expected that the four existing bodies (i.e. the Rights Commissioner, Employment Appeals Tribunal, Equality Tribunal, and Labour Court) will be merged into just two bodies. The first body will hear all claims at first instance and the second body will hear any appeals. This will greatly streamline the current system whereby employers may find themselves in all four bodies arising out of the same employee issue.