The Employment Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 2004

Information about employees to be contained in notice of industrial action N.I.

8.—(1) Article 118 of the 1995 Order (notice to employers of industrial action) is amended as follows.

(2) In paragraph (3)—

(a) for sub-paragraph (a) substitute—

“(a) contains—

(i) the lists mentioned in paragraph (3A) and the figures mentioned in paragraph (3B), together with an explanation of how those figures were arrived at, or

(ii) where some or all of the affected employees are employees from whose wages the employer makes deductions representing payments to the union, either those lists and figures and that explanation or the information mentioned in paragraph (3C); and,”

(b) omit sub-paragraph (c) and the word “and” immediately preceding it.

(3) After paragraph (3) insert—

“(3A) The lists referred to in paragraph (3)(a) are—

(a) a list of the categories of employee to which the affected employees belong, and

(b) a list of the workplaces at which the affected employees work.

(3B) The figures referred to in paragraph (3)(a) are—

(a) the total number of the affected employees,

(b) the number of the affected employees in each of the categories in the list mentioned in paragraph (3A)(a), and

(c) the number of the affected employees who work at each workplace in the list mentioned in paragraph (3A)(b).

(3C) The information referred to in paragraph (3)(a)(ii) is such information as will enable the employer readily to deduce—

(a) the total number of affected employees,

(b) the categories of employee to which the affected employees belong and the number of the affected employees in each of those categories, and

(c) the workplaces at which the affected employees work and the number of them who work at each of those workplaces.

(3D) The lists and figures supplied under this Article, or the information mentioned in paragraph (3C) that is so supplied, must be as accurate as is reasonably practicable in the light of the information in the possession of the union at the time when it complies with paragraph (1).

(3E) For the purposes of paragraph (3D) information is in the possession of the union if it is held, for union purposes—

(a) in a document, whether in electronic form or any other form, and

(b) in the possession or under the control of an officer or employee of the union.

(3F) Nothing in this Article requires a union to supply an employer with the names of the affected employees.” .

(4) In paragraph (5), for “is one of the affected employees” substitute “ falls within a notified category of employee, and the workplace at which he works is a notified workplace ”.

(5) For paragraph (5A) substitute—

“(5B) In paragraph (5)—

(a) a “notified category of employee” means—

(i) a category of employee that is listed in the notice, or

(ii) where the notice contains the information mentioned in paragraph (3C), a category of employee that the employer (at the time he receives the notice) can readily deduce from the notice is a category of employee to which some or all of the affected employees belong, and

(b) a “notified workplace” means—

(i) a workplace that is listed in the notice, or

(ii) where the notice contains the information mentioned in paragraph (3C), a workplace that the employer (at the time he receives the notice) can readily deduce from the notice is the workplace at which some or all of the affected employees work.”

(5C) In this Article references to the “affected employees” are references to those employees of the employer who the union reasonably believes will be induced by the union, or have been so induced, to take part or continue to take part in the industrial action.

(5D) For the purposes of this Article, the workplace at which an employee works is—

(a) in relation to an employee who works at or from a single set of premises, those premises, and

(b) in relation to any other employee, the premises with which his employment has the closest connection.” .

(6) In paragraph (8), after “(5)” insert “ , (5C) ”.