IHF President calls for JLC abolition

“The Government must now ensure that all employment law is created solely by legislation introduced by the Oireachtas and is applicable to all employments.” – IHF President Michael Vaughan.

The Irish Hotels Federation welcomed the recent judgment by the Supreme Court declaring Registered Employment Agreements as unconstitutional – a ruling which the IHF states is in line with a 2011 decision where the High Court declared the Joint Labour Committee (JLC) system unconstitutional.

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IHF President Michael Vaughan stated that the Supreme Court judgment “recognises the fundamentally unconstitutional nature of allowing employment law to be created by organisations such as the JLC or the Labour Court.

“The Government must now ensure that all employment law is created solely by legislation introduced by the Oireachtas and is applicable to all employments.”

He also rejected recent attempts by the Government to re-introduce JLCs as “out-of-touch with the realities confronting tourism businesses across the country”.

Government’s overriding objective must be job creation, he said, getting people started in work and giving them an opportunity to develop their skills base and careers. “We need an environment that safeguards the 54,000 employees in hotels and guesthouses but most importantly allows for further growth in employment.

“JLCs are not appropriate in a modern, competitive economy,” he added, “They have lost all relevance with the introduction of the National Minimum Wage Act and over 40 other separate pieces of extensive employment legislation including the Working Time Directive.

“It’s now time for the Government to act decisively and abolish the JLC mechanism which is fundamentally anti-business and anti-competitiveness. It imposes a serious barrier to job creation at a time when Ireland has one of the highest levels of unemployment in Europe, particularly for those under 30 years of age.”

Although not a signatory to any REAs, the LVA’s Chief Executive Donall O’Keeffe told Drinks Industry Ireland, “We have consistently argued for the abolition of the JLC system throughout the current review process to provide greater flexibility and competitiveness to employers.

“Employees have significant protections from minimum wage legislation and the raft of employee protection legislation. There is simply no need for the JLC system in a modern economy.”

“The Government must now ensure that all employment law is created solely by legislation introduced by the Oireachtas and is applicable to all employments.” – IHF President Michael Vaughan.

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