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PART 3
Enforcement
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Complaints to rights commissioner.
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14.—(1) An employee or any trade union of which the employee is a member, with the consent of the employee, may present a complaint to a rights commissioner that the employee's employer has contravened any provision of this Act in relation to the employee and, if the employee or such a trade union does so, the commissioner shall—
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(a) give the parties an opportunity to be heard by the commissioner and to present to the commissioner any evidence relevant to the complaint,
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(b) give a written decision in relation to the complaint, and
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(c) communicate the decision to the parties concerned.
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(2) A decision of a rights commissioner under subsection (1) shall do one or more of the following:
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(a) declare whether the complaint was or was not well founded;
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(b) require the employer to comply with the relevant provision;
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(c) require the employer to re-instate or re-engage the employee (including on a contract of indefinite duration);
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(d) require the employer to pay to the employee compensation of such amount (if any) as is just and equitable having regard to all the circumstances, but not exceeding 2 years remuneration in respect of the employee's employment;
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and references in paragraphs (a) to (d) to an employer shall be read in a case where ownership of the business of the employer changes after the contravention to which the complaint relates occurred, as references to the person who, by virtue of the change, becomes entitled to such ownership.
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(3) A rights commissioner shall not entertain a complaint under this section if it is presented to the commissioner after the expiration of the period of 6 months beginning on the date of the contravention to which the complaint relates or the date of termination of the contract of employment concerned, whichever is the earlier.
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(4) Notwithstanding subsection (3), a rights commissioner may entertain a complaint under this section presented to him or her after the expiration of the period referred to in subsection (3) (but not later than 12 months after the end of that period) if he or she is satisfied that the failure to present the complaint within that period was due to reasonable cause.
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(5) A complaint shall be presented by giving notice of it in writing to a rights commissioner and the notice shall contain such particulars and be in such form as may be specified from time to time by the Minister.
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(6) A copy of a notice under subsection (5) shall be given to the other party concerned by the rights commissioner.
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(7) Proceedings under this section before a rights commissioner shall be conducted otherwise than in public.
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(8) A rights commissioner shall furnish the Labour Court with a copy of each decision given by the commissioner under subsection (1).
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(9) The Minister may be regulations provide for any matters relating to proceedings under this section that the Minister considers appropriate.
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