The Fair Employment and Treatment (Northern Ireland) Order 1998

Employers to apply for registration

48.—(1) Where a concern, other than a registered concern, satisfies the condition for registration at the end of any week, the employer shall apply under this Article for the concern to be registered.

(2) For the purposes of this Part a concern satisfies the condition for registration at the end of any week if in that week more than 10 employees have been employed in Northern Ireland.

(3) In paragraph (2), the reference to employees does not include a reference to an individual employed under a contract of service or apprenticeship which normally involves employment for less than 16 hours weekly.

(4) Article 5 of the [1996 NI 16.] Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 (normal working hours) shall have effect to determine the normal working hours for the purposes of paragraph (3).

(5) The Department may by order substitute for the number of hours for the time being specified in paragraph (3) such other number as is specified in the order.

(6) An application under this Article shall—

(a) describe the concern in general terms;

(b) give the name and address of the employer; and

(c) give the number of employees employed in Northern Ireland.

(7) If an employer fails to make an application under this Article within the period of one month after the time when the concern first satisfies the condition for registration (or in the case of a concern the entry for which has been removed from the register, first satisfies that condition since the removal), he shall be guilty of an offence.

(8) A person guilty of an offence under paragraph (7)—

(a) shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale; and

(b) if the failure continues after conviction, shall be liable on a second or subsequent summary conviction to a fine not exceeding one-tenth of level 5 on the standard scale for each day on which the failure continues.

(9) It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under paragraph (7) to show that he had a reasonable excuse for failing to make an application under this Article within the period allowed and that he made such an application as soon as it was reasonably practicable for him to do so.

(10) In determining for any of the purposes of this Part whether a concern satisfies the condition for registration, references to the employees of any person (referred to in this paragraph as “the employer”) shall, if regulations made by the Department under this Article so provide or in such circumstances as may be specified in the regulations, include a reference to the employees of—

(a) any body corporate controlled by the employer and, if the employer is a body corporate, any associated body corporate; and

(b) any person connected with the employer,

and references to the employer’s concern shall be interpreted accordingly.

(11) This Article does not apply to any person who is a public authority for the purposes of Articles 52 to 61 or to any person falling within Article 50(3)(a) or (b).