More job disputes going to tribunal

Workers are increasingly looking to the Employment Appeals Tribunal to resolve unfair dismissal and other disputes with employers, it emerged yesterday.

The annual report of the tribunal for 2001 disclosed a 56 per cent rise in the number of disputes referred to the tribunal. It dealt with 5,257 cases in 2001, an increase of 795 on the previous year.

The higher figure was mainly due to an increase in the number of minimum notice cases referred.

Launching the report, the Minister for Labour Affairs, Mr Frank Fahey, said most of the tribunal's work involved dealing with claims under the unfair dismissal, minimum notice and redundancy legislation.

Claims for holiday pay under the minimum notice legislation accounted for a significant number of the tribunal's cases. The number of holiday pay claims was 264 in 2001, an increase of 94 on the previous year.

"The tribunal is conscious of the need to provide a fair, impartial, speedy and informal forum for the resolution of employment disputes within its jurisdiction," Mr Fahey said. "I believe that the tribunal has successfully met this challenge over the period of this report."

Mr Fahey noted the tribunal's jurisdiction continued to expand. Last year, the Carer's Leave Act provided for the tribunal to hear appeals from decisions of the Rights Commissioner made under that Act.

The tribunal now deals with disputes under 13 pieces of legislation concerning the termination of employment and disputes within employment.