The annual report of the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) shows that it recovered €1.95 million in unpaid wages last year.

The commission completed over 4,700 inspection cases last year, involving more than 6,500 visits.

As a result of these inspections, just over 2,200 employers were found to be contravening employment law.

The report shows that the WRC took 125 prosecutions against employers last year, 111 of which were successful.

The WRC says that its inspectorate placed a strong emphasis on areas such as:

• Fishing,
• Road transport,
• Construction and
• Agriculture.

National minimum wage enforcement was also under scrutiny.

Adjudication hearings up

The report shows that number of adjudication hearings held increased by 12% compared with 2022, while the number of decisions issued by the WRC’s adjudication service jumped by 50%.

There was also a 19% increase in mediations delivered.

The WRC report says that the success rate of its conciliation service, which is aimed at resolving workplace disputes, remains high at around 85%.

The commission received almost 62,000 calls to its information line – up 3% from 2022. A breakdown shows that more than 30% of these calls were linked to employment permits, although this was down from 38% in 2022.

E-complaint form

During the year, the WRC worked on developing the Code of Practice on the Right to Request Remote/Flexible Work, which was published in March this year.

The body also began developing a new e-complaint form last year. It says that the form, which will go live this year, will enable the public to submit complaints to the WRC in a more efficient way.

The WRC adds that the form will be accessible across all digital platforms – including mobiles and tablets.

Audrey Cahill (WRC director general) described 2023 as the commission’s first full year of normal services since 2019.