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Hiring
A positive recruitment experience gets the working relationship off to the best start. It is important to follow a number of steps and adopt a best practice approach.
Legislation
Welcome to the Labour Relations Agency’s employment legislation link pages. We have attempted to collate all relevant employment legislation (Primary and Secondary) on these pages for our users’ ease of reference. Essentially users will get a brief summary of the content of the legislation and then a link to the www.legislation.gov.uk website delivered by the National Archives via www.nationalarchives.gov.uk.
1871-1976
Index of employment-related statute (Acts and Orders) 1871-1976
Fair Employment (School Teachers) Act (Northern Ireland) 2022
This legislation was enacted by the Northern Ireland Assembly in 2022 and came into effect on 12th May 2024.
From this date, it will be unlawful to discriminate on the grounds of religious or philosophical belief or political opinion in respectof the recruitment or promotion of teachers in schools in Northern Ireland.
Prior to 2003, FETO, and its predecessors, did not prohibit discrimination on the grounds of religious or philosophical belief or political opinion in relation to any aspect of the employment of school teachers. That was due to the effects of article 71 of FETO, commonly known as the teachers’ exception.
This situation changed through a process that began in 2003 when an EU equality law, Council Directive 2000/78/EC, required the exception to be modified and
narrowed. As a result, and since then, FETO has prohibited discrimination on its equality grounds in relation to most aspects of the employment of teachers in
schools; e.g. in relation to pay, training, absence and performance management,
dismissal, harassment.
Despite that change, FETO’s prohibition of discrimination did not apply to the recruitment or promotion of teachers in schools due to the continuing effects of one part of the article 71 exception that remained.
The remaining gap in coverage was filled on 12 May 2024 with the inrtoduction of this legislation.
Who we are
The Labour Relations Agency (the Agency) was established in 1976 with responsibility for promoting the improvement of employment relations in Northern Ireland. It is independent and publicly funded.
Equality statement
The Labour Relations Agency fully supports the elimination of all forms of discrimination in employment.
EARLY CONCILIATION COMING TO NI 27 JANUARY 2020
Following a change in employment law, the Labour Relations Agency will provide a new service to employees, employers, and their representatives.
409 Redundancy Payments (Continuity of Employment in Local Government etc) (Modification) Order (Northern Ireland) 1999
This Order comes into effect on 7/11/99 and revokes the 1986 Order of the same name and subsequent provisions, namely the Redundancy Payments (local Government etc) (Modification) Order (Northern Ireland) 1986.
Types of problems
Problems can arise in any workplace. Below are some examples, though not an exhaustive list. Employers, employees and their representatives may find it helpful to refer to the Labour Relations Agency's codes of practice, sample letters, flowcharts and guides. Our service is confidential and all our resources are free of charge to anyone working to prevent or resolve a workplace issue in Northern Ireland.