George Washingtons Advice to the American People Essay Example for Free

George Washingtons Advice to the American People Essay George Washington’s farewell letter, it is almost impossible for me to choose his most important piece of advice. His points seem almost haunting while reading them with our country in its present condition. Washington had such foresight and wisdom. The sad reality is that we as a country have so strayed from his advice. He made multiple points that I think are vastly important. Washington warned against political parties. He pointed out that they only cause disagreements and disunity among the people. Instead of Americans being one unified people, we have become defined by our political party. Republicans and democrats are in constant struggle over views and agendas. Washington warned us to flee from these and hold fast to unity. Washington also emphasized the importance of religion and morality. He held tightly to the belief that a person’s spiritual life had effects on one’s decisions in everyday life. With morality as the heart of an issue, people are more likely to treat each other fairly and be unified in spirit. One of the most outstanding pieces of advice from our first president sends chills down my spine. Washington encouraged sparing use of credit. He did not believe we as a nation should be in debt to anyone, which is also Biblical. He warned us to take heed of falling into debt. This is great advice that has so obviously been forgotten it is maddening. Our country is currently 16 trillion dollars in debt. We spend more than we take in, and we are putting our future in the hands of government of foreign lands. This reality speaks wholeheartedly to Washington’s next piece of advice. The last two pieces of advice I believe go hand in hand. Washington spelled out plainly that we did not want to be overly involved with other nations; in fact, he discouraged permanent alliances with any foreign nation. By doing so, we put our national security at possible risk. In regards to national security, Washington believed that we should have a strong military force. Being in the military, Washington understood to need for men purposed to fight for our freedom. This is yet another issue we face today with our current president wishing to downsize our military. I truly believe if we will begin to follow Washington’s advice, at least in part, we can improve the future of our country. Lastly, I believe Washington encouraged unity in almost every point he made. He was passionate for our country, for our freedom, for our future. In his farewell address he stated that at the mere thought of the honor and privilege of being an American, the spirit of patriotism should unite us all to action. The pride of being an American should link us like no other nation before or since.

Introducing New Software and Hardware :: Sales Consumerism Technology Essays

Introducing New Software and Hardware ICT Coursework-Spreadsheet Identify: Mr Smith, who is the owner of JC SPORTS, has discovered three main problems with his shop's basketball sales, these were due to: 1. The old-fashioned manual systems in his company. (Manual system). 2. The lack of interest for the latest new products on the market. (Marketing system). 3. The lack of a new hardware & software systems. (Computer system). Surprisingly, because of poor product handling, out of all the sales in his sports and design shop, the amount of basketball sports goods sold dropped massively over the past six months. At the time, I happened to assist Mr Smith as he was recording down his sales. Mr Smith was not very clever when it came to using computers. He needed a quite a lot of helping out. Due to the fact that I was one of his best customers, Mr Smith then showed me his most baffling results that he recently found out. The problem was that Mr Smith was pretty old fashioned and used the ancient, long gone manual technology like the typewriter to sort out his business instead of using the modern day computer software and technology such as the word processor and the spreadsheet. Since I was compiling this project, I offered to help him solve this very problem by myself doing a series of analysis on the sales, marketing and systems later on in that very same week. It was a challenge. Mr Smith was very much obliged and gave me his sales report immediately. I also advised him to shape up and use the latest up-to-date, business & industrial technology around him and not use his very old, former technology. Later on at home, as I assessed the report, I took into consideration any possible alternative solutions and objectives of the following concerning a sales analysis, marketing analysis and a system analysis. These were ========== 1. Write a questionnaire: Write questionnaire in Microsoft Word. (For the customers- Customers will fill it in) 2. Do a survey: Plot survey results in Microsoft PowerPoint. (For the customers- Questionnaires will be sent out to customers as part of survey) 3. Enter all information and data into both Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel. 4. Cut down prices: this will help by attracting customers who would like to buy the product at an affordable price. 5. Include deals: this is making special offers to customers that they will find hard to resist. 6. Advertise: this will help more and more people, customers and business associates know more about the product. 7. Introduce new appropriate hardware and software. Analyse: Continuing assessing my project, I conducted a feasibility study on

Importance of Sex Education in School

Many parents are against sex education being taught within the schools. Sex is a very sensitive subject. Many parents feel that it is not appropriate to teach children these  ¡Ã‚ §facts of life ¡ at such a young age. Shouldn ¡t one wait for marriage to learn about these things any way? The overwhelming fact is that a growing number of teens especially are thinking about and even having sexual encounters. Should sex education be taught in school? Some say that is no longer the question, but rather how should it be taught. Over 93% of all public high schools currently offer courses on sexuality or HIV. More than 510 junior or senior high schools have school-linked health clinics, and more than 300 schools make condoms available on campus. (Sex Education in the Schools) The following is a discussion of the many questions associated with teaching sex education at school. 1. Why do youth need sex education? – The United States has more than double the teenage pregnancy rate of any western industrialized country. More than a million teenagers become pregnant annually. In addition, teenagers have the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) of any age group. In fact, one in four young people contract an STD by the age of 21.(Sex Education in Schools) 2. Why should schools be involved in sex education? – Most parents still avoid the issue. Keeping children ignorant endangers their lives ¡Xespecially for the millions of teens who have already begun having sex. An overwhelming 61% of male high school students and 48% of female high school students fit in this category. (CDC, U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Sexual Behavior Among High School Students, What You Should Know About Sexuality Education) 3. If sexuality education is so useful, why are so many teens still having sex and getting pregnant? – It is also the product of the child ¡s environment and experiences that leads them down a certain path. The total responsibility cannot be placed on school education. Here are some tips provided by Planned Parenthood for parents dealing with the issue of sex with their children. (National Family Sexuality Education Month) „h Be open and respectful about your child ¡s questions „h Examine your values about sexuality Here are some scary STDs, Sexually Transmitted Diseases, which teens should be aware of: „ « HIV – Human Immunodeficiency Virus. This weakens your immune system, making you susceptible to any other virus or bacterial germ in creation. HIV leads to AIDS, which is fatal and is now the leading cause of death in America with no cure or vaccine available. (Three Scary STDs) HIV is passed through blood, semen, vaginal fluids, and breast milk. „ « CHLAMYDIA- It's called the â€Å"invisible STD† because a large percentage of people who have it don't show symptoms. Chlamydia is bacterial, so it can be treated in its early stages with antibiotics. However, if left untreated, it can leave you sterile. „ « GENITAL WARTS – A type of the Human Papilloma Virus. Some types of this virus cause warts, others show NO symptoms. There are 60 different types altogether. Luckily, there are a number of ways to treat it. However, even with treatment, the warts can always recur. Condoms do offer some protection, but viruses can â€Å"shed† on areas not covered by the condom. (Three Scary STDs)

The Workplace Relations Bill 2014 - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 11 Words: 3290 Downloads: 10 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Law Essay Type Analytical essay Tags: Social Essay Did you like this example? Ireland is currently undergoing à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"a challenging social and economic climate for families, the employed and the unemployedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[1] The rate of unemployment is still, unfortunately, very high, despite dropping to 11.7% from a peak of 15.1% in 2012.[2] This uneasy atmosphere leads to an increase in litigation, with more and more employees pursuing claims against their employers. Unfortunately, due to the structure of Irish employment law, litigation in this area can often be a costly, lengthy, and inefficient process, for all parties involved. In fact, a survey undertaken by Dr Barry in 2011 shows that 96 out of 103 practitioners believe that the current system is in need of a complete overhaul.[3] The Workplace Relations Bill, 2014 proposes to significantly change the structure of Irish employment law. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Workplace Relations Bill 2014" essay for you Create order Based on the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Blueprint to Deliver a World-Class Workplace Relations Serviceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  (published in April 2012 by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation), this Bill, if enacted, will alter the way disputes are resolved between employers and employees in this jurisdiction. The overarching themes of this Bill seem to be about giving priority to speed and simplicity à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" this reform is very much welcome, especially considering how convoluted Irish employment law has become. While there are an overwhelming amount of positive changes and tweaks in this Bill that will change the resolution of disputes for the better, certain aspects of the Bill could potentially have a negative impact on the system, mostly due to a lack of detail. In order to assess the potential significance of the Bill, it is necessary to first examine its aims. Overall, according Mr Richard Burton, TD, the goal of the Bill is to create a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"world-class workpla ce relations serviceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[4] The Explanatory Memorandum states that that the Bill will à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"provide significant benefits for its users and society as a whole. The focus will be on resolving the workplace disputes as quickly and inexpensively as possibleà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[5] Merging of Existing Bodies According to Cox, Corbett and Ryan, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"a key distinguishing feature of Irish employment litigation is the multiplicity of different for a in which claims may be broughtà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[6] This is huge problem in the current system, one that is unique to Ireland, for numerous reasons that will be examined below. Currently, there are several bodies that deal with workplace relations. These include the Rights Commissioner Service (LRC), the National Employment Rights Authority (NERA), the Equality Tribunal, and the Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT). The old system is potentially unfair due to the large number of these bodies, some with simil ar functions, making it easy for employees to become daunted, as it is unclear which of the bodies suit their particular claim. This leads to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"forum shoppingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, which requires legal advice à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" yet another cost on top of the litigation. Perhaps even more troubling is the fact that if the claims are directed to the wrong forum, or under the wrong statute, they can become statute-barred before the error of the action is discovered.[7] A good illustration of some of the difficulties multiplicity of fora poses to dispute resolution can be seen in the recent case of Cunningham v Intel Ireland Ltd.[8] This case started out as a discrimination claim against Intel. The litigant in question held a senior role within the company, and claimed that she was discriminated against because of her return from maternity leave. The worker brought an action to the Equality Tribunal (for gender discrimination), as well as a separate action to the High Court (for personal injuries sustained due to her treatment in the workplace). The employer argued the High Court action should dismissed, as it would be unfair to have the same case argued twice. The Courts agreed, citing an old common law rule from the case of Henderson v Henderson,[9] which states that as a matter of public policy, a defendant should not be vexed with having to defend a case in several places. This is extremely harsh, and potentially even infringes on the right to court access. The system is also unfair for employees in the sense that it is possible for several appeals to be heard in a single case, greatly prolonging the proceedings. An extreme example of this can be found in the case of JVC Europe Ltd v Ponisi[10], a case in which an unfair dismissals claim was heard four times, with Mr Ponisi succeeding each time. Mr Justice Charleton referred to this as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"cumbersome and redolent with potential for unfairnessà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[11] On the other ha nd, from the point of view of the employers, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"employers may often find themselves having to fight a number of fires in different forums all emanating from the same disputeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[12] Overall, the system has been described as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"a chaotic and poorly functioning regimeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[13] The Bill, if enacted, will merge all the existing bodies into a single two-tier system, an action that will potentially get rid of a lot of these difficulties. For the first instance claims, the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) will be established. Appeals will be brought to an expanded version of the Labour Court. This new system is bound to fix a multitude of problems concerning the multiplicity of fora described above, and is a vast improvement over having four different bodies governing decisions in a similar area. In fact, this system has come recommended by many à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" according to a survey undertaken by Dr Barry, 80% of employment law practitioners support the two-tier system.[14] The two-tier system gets rid of the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"forum shoppingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ problem for disputes, as it means that there is only one point of access for employment law litigation. The new system also solves the problem of having such a large number of opportunities by appeal by restricting appeals only to the new Labour Court (s.44), with only one more opportunity to appeal to the High Court, but only on a point of law (s.47). This will ensure that all disputes are efficiently dealt with. Labour Court also promises to be efficient due to the new appeal period (42 days, s.44). The only issue is, again, the expanded scope of potential areas of law which will be decided on there. This is a problem, considering the old Labour Court was mostly specialised in industrial relations issues. There is, however, a slight problem in terms of the logistics of merging all these bodies into one. Dr Barry cites NERAà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Ann ual Report 2013, which states that at the moment, NERAà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Workplace Customer Relations Service processes complaints to the Rights Commissioner Service, the Equality Tribunal, the Employment Appeals Tribunal, and the Labour Court à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" this amounts to 15,558 complaints for the year, which is a staggering 43 complaints per day.[15] After the merging of the bodies, this task, which at the moment merely directs complaints to the various bodies, will become much more complex, considering that the complaints must now be directed to the various services between the WRC. If this process does not go smoothly, then there is the potential for workplace disputes to remain just as slow-paced as before. Kevin Duffy, the Labour Court chairman, has recently stated that the changes will à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"present many challengesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, and that the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"overall architecture will be differentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, as well as the fact that he anticipates à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"a 56% increase in [their] workloadà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[16] Dr Barry suggests some practical methods for ensuring a smooth transfer, such as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"strategic preparation for case-transferà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, the development of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"a proper case management system to include an online portalà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, as well as the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"proper training of staffà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[17] Merging the bodies also alleviates another problem the previous system had, which is a lack of consistency in between the judgments. Some practitioners that participated in Dr Barryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s survey referred to above mentioned that Rights Commissioners à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"seem to forget that they are there to make an unbiased decision on the factsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, and that in the EAT, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"it really is a lottery and almost identical cases go either wayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. By merging the bodies into one, it will be easier to maintain an equal standard abo ve the board and make sure that decisions remain consistent. There is also the concern that merging the existing bodies is merely a re-shuffling of existing bodies, meaning that the change might not be as dramatic as it seems on the surface level. Costs The Bill makes no provision as to the possibility of being liable for legal costs. If it is possible for the losing party to be liable for the costs of the winning party, it could prove to be a huge imbalance between the employer and the employee, as due to a lack of funds, an employee may be more apprehensive at attempting to seek justice through the new system. Dr Barry recommends including a liability for costs for vexatious claims, or those with no reasonable prospect of succeeding[18], which is the current method in the UK Employment Tribunals. This will help strike a balance between access to the courts and stopping time-wasting through vexatious claims. Early Dispute Resolution and Mediation One of the key chang es proposed by the Bill is the introduction of early dispute resolution. According to ss.36-40, there will be three new services introduced for resolving disputes in the WRC à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" these will be provided by case resolution officers, mediation officers and adjudicators.[19] The former two will be in charge of facilitating à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"the resolution of disputes where possible at an early stage and without recourse to adjudicationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[20] This is relevant for less complex disputes, for instance, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"disputes as to whether an employee has receive information on Terms of Employment or a payslipà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[21] The WRC Director General can suggest the parties to make use of the Case Resolution Officer or the Mediation Officer, but the parties can reject this suggestion and instead opt for the Adjudication Officer, who will hold a more formal hearing. Dr Barry makes the argument that having two split positions that, for all intents and pur poses, have the same goal, would be wasteful. The positions of Case Resolution Officers and Mediation Officers are indeed quite similar, and differ only in terms of the complexity of the issues that they deal with. This is why he argues for merging of the two positions, basing his arguments on example services that already exist in the UK such as the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Serviceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s (ACAS) Early Conciliation Service. He also raises the issue with the Adjudication Officers, who will be former Rights Commissioners and Equality Officers from the Equality Tribunal (s.40(3)). The issue is that they may not have enough experience with some of the complexities of other areas of employment law that they will have to examine over the course of their work (s.41(4)), which could lead in some inaccurate judgments. There is also little detail as to how these Officers, with so many responsibilities, will be appointed. Another welcome change is to do with mediat ion à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" whereas previously, formal mediation was mostly available to claims under the Employment Equality Acts,[22] the Bill proposes to offer mediation for all employment rights disputes (s.38). Mediation, as well as other forms of Alternate Dispute Resolution, play an increasingly important role in legal matters. It has been stated that it à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“offers a means of bringing workplace justice to more people, at lower cost andà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦it also helps to clear the backlog of cases at statutory dispute resolution institutions and is thus assisting government agencies to meet their societal responsibilities more effectivelyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ .[23] This quote demonstrates some of the improvements that employers and employees will receive by the incorporation of mediation into every aspect of employment law. Similar mediation programmes have worked well in other jurisdictions. For instance, in Ontario, due to the mandatory mediation programme, 90% of matters do not end up in court. An even better result is achieved by the New Zealand State Mediation Service. The process consists of assessing whether or not mediation is possible before the case goes to court. A staggering 95% of claims do not end up in court due to this system. Although it would be nave to suggest that the same result will be achieved here as soon as the Bill passes, mediation will undoubtedly have a positive impact on the way disputes are resolved between employers and employees.[24] Under s.42, the Adjudication Officer is able to strike out claims that are à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"frivolous or vexatiousà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ This is another example of the Bill attempting to speed up the general process of dispute resolution. This could, however, be potentially be unfair, as it denies the litigant the right to a hearing during a dispute[25]. However, the safeguard of being able to appeal this to the Labour Court seems to potentially alleviate some of these concerns. The above prov isions demonstrate that it seems like the Bill will affect dispute resolution in the sense that the disputes will be settled as early as possible, to ensure efficiency and time management for both the WRC and the Labour Court, and the parties involved. As Kevin Duffy said, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“I confidently expect that the changes in the Bill, particularly the provisions in respect of mediation and early resolution, will increase the settlement rate and that cases will settle earlier on, and not at the date of the hearing where the resource of the Court are wastedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ .[26] Privacy Concerns One key change that will come about if the Bill is enacted is the fact that hearings in the WRC will be held in private. Appeals to the Labour Court, on the other hand, will be held in public. This could have a negative impact on the way disputes are resolved between employers and employees, according to Dr Barry à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" he argues that if privacy is an issue, a threat of an appeal could be used as a sort of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"bargaining chipà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ by one of the parties, making proceedings unfair.[27] There is also, of course, the issue of the argument of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"access to justiceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" private hearings are always problematic, unless there are exceptional circumstances that demand it (family law in camera proceedings, for instance). According to the Constitution, justice has to be administered in public, except for à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"special and limited cases as may be prescribed by lawà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[28] Also, the European Convention on Human Rights features the right à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial tribunal established by lawà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[29] An argument could be made comparing this provision to those concerning company law hearings (which can sometimes be held in private). However, in those situations there is a clear provision for when privacy is permitted à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" the hearing has to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"involve the disclosure of information the publication of which would be seriously prejudicial to the legitimate interest of the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[30] There is no such provision in the Bill, making it more suspect. These private hearings à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"could undermine the principle of ensuring public confidence in the justice systemà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[31] The extensive powers given to the adjudicators by the Bill are bound to leave both the potential litigants and the public in general in doubt of such a system. If there is no trust in the system, then people might be less likely to use it, causing a negative impact on the way employment law disputes are resolved. Another concern in this area was raised by Noel Dowling, a former trade unionist. He argues that there could be issues with the Bill in the context of unfair dismissals. If the hearings are held in private, this could throw the balance of power in favour of the employer.[32] Compliance with Employment Legislation à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Prevention is the best cureà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, some would say à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" this statement is an accurate description behind the philosophy behind some of the sections of the Bill. By promoting à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"higher levels of compliance with legislationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢,[33] the bill will be helpful in stopping employment disputes before they begin, saving cost, time and the mental health of participants in the process. Compliance will mostly be enforced by inspectors. Compliance notices are a new feature provided for in the Bill that serves as an example of this. According to s.27 of the Bill, if it is discovered that employment law is not being complied with within the workplace, an Inspector may issue such a notice to the employer. If the notice is not complied with the employer may be prosecuted. To make sure that the balance isnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t entirely tippe d against the employer, (s)he will receive a chance to appeal such a notice in the Labour Court. Another way in which the Bill will attempt to ensure compliance is through à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"fixed charge noticesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, a particular type of fine for certain employment legislation breaches such as failing to produce wage statements to employees, or for failing to provide employees with a written statement of their hourly rate of pay for a pay reference period (s.35). These fines can reach up to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬2,000. Such a fine may be appealed to the District Court. The purpose of this is to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"reduce the need to rely on expensive and time consuming prosecution procedures for the scheduled acts of non-complianceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[34] Conclusion The aims of the Workplace Relations Bill, 2014 are noble. It is fair to say that employment law, in Ireland in particular, has become extremely complex and daunting for potential litigants à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" the fa ct that it is often a costly and lengthy process just solidifies the fact that reform is needed. The Billà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s goal of increasing efficiency, through merging several existing bodies into a single two-tier system, coupled with a focus on early dispute resolution, are bound to make resolving disputes between employers and employees a lot easier and stress-free. There are still, however, some concerns with regards to the lack of detail in the Bill, which might be problematic in terms of logistics. This could undermine some of the lofty goal the Bill sets out to achieve. Also, the lack of open hearings, as well as the powers given to the adjudicators could throw the balance of power in favour of one party over the other, making the dispute resolution unfair. Of course, it is very possible that some of these concerns will be alleviated through future amendments to the Bill. Overall, the Bill is a positive step in terms of simplifying employment law. If certain amendme nts and clarifications are made, it will have a significant positive impact on the way disputes between employers and employees are resolved. [1] Labour Relations Commission, Annual Report (2013). [2] Ibid. [3] Dr Brian Barry, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"The Workplace Relations Bill 2014 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" An Important Opportunity for Workplace Relations Reformà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (2014) IELJ 11(4). [4] Legislating for a World-Class Workplace Relations Service: Submission to Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (July 2012). [5] Workplace Relations Bill, 2014, Explanatory Memorandum. [6] Neville Cox, Val Corbett and Des Ryan, Employment Law in Ireland (Clarus Press 2009). [7] Legislating for a World-Class Workplace Relations Service: Submission to Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (July 2012). [8] [2013] IEHC 207. [9] (1843) 3 Hare 100, [1843] EngR 917, (1843) 67 ER 313. [10][2011] IEHC 279. [11] Ibid. [12] Brian Hutchinson, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Editorialà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (2014) Commercial Law Practitioner, 8, 174. [13] Tom Mallon, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Employment Law Re formà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (2012) IELJ 3, 76-80. [14] Dr Brian Barry, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"The Workplace Relations Bill 2014 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" An Important Opportunity for Workplace Relations Reformà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (2014) IELJ 11(4). [15] Ibid [16] Kyran Fitzgerald and Andy Prendergast, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Changes to Stateà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Dispute Resolution Bodies to be à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Profound and Revolutionaryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (2014) IRN 42. [17] Dr Brian Barry, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"The Workplace Relations Bill 2014 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" An Important Opportunity for Workplace Relations Reformà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (2014) IELJ 11(4). [18] Ibid. [19] Workplace Relations Bill, 2014, ss.36-40. [20] Ibid. [21] Workplace Relations Bill, 2014, Explanatory Memorandum. [22] Employment Equality Acts 1998-2008, s.78. [23] Hanneli Bendeman, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"ADR in the Workplace à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" The South African Experienceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (2007) African Jon Conflic t Journal 7(139). [24] Dr Barry, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Workplace Relations Bill 2014 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Reforming Employment Dispute Resolution in Irelandà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" TCD Lecture. [25] Lyons v Financial Services Ombudsman [2011] IEHC 422. [26] Kyran Fitzgerald and Andy Prendergast, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Changes to Stateà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Dispute Resolution Bodies to be à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Profound and Revolutionaryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (2014) IRN 42. [27] Dr Brian Barry, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"The Workplace Relations Bill 2014 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" An Important Opportunity for Workplace Relations Reformà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (2014) IELJ 11(4). [28] The Constitution of Ireland, Art.34.1 °. [29] European Convention on Human Rights, Art.6(1). [30] Companies Acts (1963-2008), s.205(7). [31] Claire Bruton, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Editorialà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (2014) IELJ 11(4). [32] Noel Dowling, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Unfair Dismissals Powers That Be Set to Squeeze the Little Person?à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (2014) IRN 37, 22-23. [33] Workplace Relations Bill, 2014, Explanatory Memorandum. [34] Workplace Relations Bill, 2014, Explanatory Memorandum.