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CD/26/82 |
RECOMMENDATION NO. LCR23328
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INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACTS 1946 TO 2015
SECTION 20(1) INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACT 1969
PARTIES:
ELIS TEXTILE SERVICES LIMITED
AND
A WORKER
(REPRESENTED BY ELENA NASONOVA)
DIVISION:
| Chairman: | Mr Haugh |
| Employer Member: | Mr O'Brien |
| Worker Member: | Mr Bell |
SUBJECT:
Referral under Section 20(1) Industrial Relations Act 1969.
BACKGROUND:
The Worker referred this case to the Labour Court on 3 April 2026 in accordance with Section 20 (1) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1969 and agreed to be bound by the Court’s Recommendation.
A Labour Court hearing took place on 12 August 2026.
RECOMMENDATION:
The Dispute
The Worker referred the within dispute regarding alleged excessive monitoring of him by CCTV and related health and safety complaints to the Court under section 20(1) of the Industrial Relations Act 1969 on 3 April 2026. The Court sat to consider the referral on 12 August 2026. There was no appearance on behalf of the Respondent company, Elis Textiles Limited (‘the Company’), at the hearing.
The Worker’s Submission
The Worker’s submission is that he was subjected to excessive monitoring by CCTV in the Workplace in violation of his data protection rights. He also submits that he has been the target of abuse such as provocative behaviour, verbal and psychological attacks, pressure and intimidation. His Representative informed the Court that the Worker has a number of complaints pending before the Workplace Relations Commission in relation to the latter matters under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.
Discussion and Recommendation
The Oireachtas has entrusted the regulation of data protection rights to the Data Protection Commission. It is not an area, therefore, which falls, per se, within the remit of this Court.
As the Worker has a number of statutory complaints pending under the 2005 Act, which appear to coincide with the matters raised in this referral under section 20(1), the Court is of the view that the Worker is seeking to ventilate the same complaints simultaneously in two different fora. That being the case, the Court finds that the statutory complaints take precedence and it declines to investigate the same subject matter in parallel to the statutory complaints.
The Court so recommends.
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Signed on behalf of the Labour Court |
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Alan Haugh |
| CC | ______________________ |
| 17/09/2026 | Deputy Chairman |
NOTE
Enquiries concerning this Recommendation should be in writing and addressed to Ms Ceola Cronin, Court Secretary.